Of Unwilling Engagements
by Yukimura Akira
Summary: What would you do if you were suddenly engaged to someone you don't know? Steer clear of the person of course! Well, that's assuming that you can... Made minor edits to the story, but no changes to the plot.
1. What? Engaged? No way!

Disclaimer: As much as I'd like to claim the wonderful Haruka and Michiru as my own creations, I'm unable to do so. I do not own Sailor Moon or its characters in anyway.

**Warning: For people who are homophobic, press the 'back' button now while you can. Do not proceed.**

Akira: Okaaay... This is my third time revising this chapter. I went back to read and I found some things that didn't quite match so… Yeah, there's been real slight changes. Hopefully it's better now.

_Chapter 1: What?! Engaged?! No way!_

It was a busy working day and the Christmas charity function for Tenou corp. would be arriving in a matter of months. Everybody was busying over their own chores. They were either typing away madly on their keyboards, or speaking animatedly into their phones trying to clinch new deals for the company. All working hands came to a stop to greet the new presence in the office who was a tall blond boy around the age of nineteen that was weirdly enough, dressed in a dirty jumpsuit from a garage, busy storming his way through the maze of desks with difficulty.

"Good morning, Tenou-san," greeted the employees as they bowed when the teenager strode past their desks. The blond cursed as he trudged through the small spaces in between the desks. It felt as if the desks were blocking his way intentionally and mocking him so as to delay his arrival in the president's office where someone awaited him.

'This is dumb, even the _desks_ are making fun of me,' he thought to himself, making a mental note to find and fire the damn interior designer who decided to place the desks in this fashion, making it so hard to walk around the office. 'Can this day get any worse?'

"_Hmmm… There's something wrong here and I can't really put a finger on it…" Haruka muttered to himself, deep in thought as he laid under the car in his dirty navy blue jumpsuit which was covered with grease all over. A loud call of his name jerked him out of his thoughts as he hissed in pain, bumping his forehead against the underside of the car and earning a snicker from his friend who was standing in front him as he rolled out from under the vehicle._

"_Damn it, Hiro, quit laughing already. What's up?" the blond muttered as he rubbed his sore forehead, annoyed at his fellow mechanic who was still laughing at his blunder._

"_Hehe, I'm sorry about that Haru, couldn't resist. Anyway, Masa-san wants you up in the office, said something about a phone call for you from your dad," Hiroki replied, holding up his hands in defense as he tried to suppress his grin. _

"_My old man? What does he want from me?" the blond removed his gloves and absentmindedly ran a hand through his short, dirty blonde tousle habitually when he noticed his friend shrug in response. "Well, I'll be up in the office if you need me." He pat his friend on the shoulder and soon, he was gone like the wind._

_Reaching the office of the garage, he gave an audible knock before entering the room. The large, round man behind the table stopped his animated conversation on the phone abruptly and smiled kindly at the young man who stood before him with an inquiring look on his face._

"_Masa oji-san, is that my old man on the phone?" the blond sat himself down on the chair in front of the desk as the large man, probably in his fifties gestured for him to sit in the chair instead of standing at the door._

"_Ah yes, Haruka-kun," replied Masaru in an amiable manner, his blue eyes twinkling a little as he beamed at Haruka before speaking into the receiver again to excuse himself for the rudeness of cutting off his earlier conversation with the president of the Tenou Group. "Toshi is on the line, I need to be checking up on the stuff below. Have a nice chat with him," the fat man stood up from his leather office chair and exited the room quietly._

"_Hello? Yes it's me, what do you want, old man?"_

The blond fumed as he flung open the door with a resounding bang, causing everyone in the office to stop staring and return to their own work. After all, they had a job to do.

"What is the meaning of this, kuso oyaji?!" the teal eyed teen yelled at the top of his voice and slammed his palm against the shiny, expensive looking oak desk, not even bothering to close the door after his entry.

Tenou Toshihiko smiled calmly at his infuriated son as his graying blond hair shone in the sunlight which managed to sieve through the curtains behind him and replied impassively, "Haruka, do you mind closing the door? I would like my privacy here."

"I don't have time for your mind games, kuso oyaji!" the handsome blond narrowed his teal orbs menacingly, glared at his father in frustration and then proceeded to close the door with another resounding bang, knowing that his old man would never answer his question if he didn't do as he said.

"Thank you, Haruka. So… what is the meaning of what?" asked Toshihiko, who entwined his fingers under his chin and placed his elbows onto the shiny work desk, resting on them as he did so.

"Don't play games with me, kuso oyaji; you know damn well what I'm talking about! What the _hell_ were you thinking?! Are you out of your _fucking_ mind?!" he plopped into the chair as he tousled his blond hair in anger and irritation, and growling in frustration.

"Language, son. Don't get so worked up, Haruka. It's beneficial for both parties, and as far as I'm concerned, I want nothing but your well-being. You know that to inherit the company you'll need to get married. I'm already getting on in years; all I want is to see you inheriting the fruit of my labor. With the merging of two major companies in the aerospace industry, we can definitely bring our creations to the next level," Toshihiko stood from his chair and walked around the desk to stand behind his son, placing hands of reassurance onto Haruka's shoulders.

"How is this wishing for my well-being?! We're talking about marriage here! This is no joking matter!" yelled Haruka once again, making a move to stand up only to be pushed back down into his original position by the strong hands on his shoulders.

"Calm down and listen to me just this once, Haru. It wouldn't have come to this if I could do it myself. This is a big leap for us and I'm making use of this opportunity to outdo our best performance in years."

Having calmed down significantly, he took a deep breath before he spoke again, "Oyaji, I'd like to help you with whatever I can do but… You're forgetting one ultimate factor here, and that is, I'm not-

The phone gave a 'beep' and soon, the secretary's voice came through the speaker on the phone.

"Shachou, Kaiou-sama is on the line, shall I put him through?"

Toshihiko nodded and spoke clearly, "Put him through and… one more thing, Sumeragi-san."

"Yes, sir?"

"Bring in my coffee in five minutes."

"Got it, sir."

Toshihiko walked back to his chair, sitting down on it as he picked the receiver up into his hand, pressing it against his ear.

"Hello, this is Tenou speaking. Yes, it's good to talk to you again, Kaiou-san. The deal? Yes, it's still standing of course, I'll make sure to see it through, don't worry about it." Toshihiko spoke animatedly as he gestured for Haruka to remain unmoving in his seat without making any sound.

At that point in time, Haruka wasn't even paying attention to their conversation. He was drifting off into his own world; his head was swarmed with thoughts of the upcoming race and the ones after. This had to be a bad joke, yes, it must've been. His father loved playing tricks on him just to see his different reactions. That's right; it's just a weird hobby of his father's. The deep voice of his father shook him from his thoughts as he registered what his father just said in his mind.

"Haruka, are you listening? We're having dinner with them tonight. I'm sure you'll like her; she's an accomplished violinist of your age. There'll be plenty for the both of you to talk about." The blond man put the receiver back in its place, and picked his cell phone up as it vibrated. "By the way, Masaru just texted to say that Hiroki-kun needs you back at the workshop."

Haruka groaned outwardly as he made his way out of the office, sulking visibly. Back to the question, could this day get any worse? Yes, and in fact, it just did.

He stopped in his tracks in front of his car and cursed as he jerked his head up, as if remembering something.

'Damn it, guess I'll have to get the name of that stupid interior designer some other day.'

* * *

Leaning against the window pane, a beautiful aqua haired sighed as rain droplets fell from the dark skies hitting the glass pane repeatedly. Lifting herself away from the window, she walked towards her Stradivarius and removed it from the case. Gently tucking the violin in between her chin and shoulder, she raised the bow to the strings and closed her eyes.

'Why is my life so empty?'

The melodic sounds of the violin soon merged with the rhythm of the rain droplets landing on the glass surface, creating a complicated atmosphere within the dark, enclosed room. Anyone listening to the music could simply tell that the violinist was greatly troubled by something on her mind. A knock on the door was all it took to cease the music in the room completely. Slowly lowering her bow from the strings, she turned her attention to the door and replied to the knock, "Come in."

"What is the matter?" enquired Michiru, her ocean blue eyes glimmering in the dark while she scrutinized the small quavering brunette standing at the door who was fiddling with her fingers in nervousness as she placed the Stradivarius back into its case.

The brunette bowed deeply, hitting her head against the doorknob clumsily as she held back the tears in pain, clutching her poor swollen forehead while replying, "Ah, I'm sorry for my rudeness, Ojou-sama. There's a phone call for you from Oku-sama."

A soft giggle escaped her tender cherry lips as she walked over to the nervous girl who had her head bowed due to embarrassment and placed two soft fingers under the nervous girl's chin, lifting her head so that their eyes met and leaned down, pecking the sore spot on her forehead before giving an intriguing smile as she walked past the girl saying, "A lady should learn to take better care of their looks, Hitomi-san."

The brunette flustered and gave a meek reply of 'Hai!' before blushing hard and quickly bringing her small hands to where her heart was, trying to steady her erratic heartbeat. When it was finally beating normally, the maid couldn't help but wonder why did she react like that before her employer, a girl no less?

Wait… There's something odd. It was her first day at work in the mansion and they had not been formally introduced, so how did the perfect aqua haired beauty get to know her name?

* * *

"Hello, good afternoon, Okaa-san. Is something the matter?" Michiru settled herself onto the leather couch as she spoke into the phone.

"_My, are you trying to imply that I can't call you unless something is up?"_

She let out a smile.

"Of course not, Okaa-san, you know very well that's not what I meant."

"_Yes, I know. I was only joking with you. By the way, we have an important dinner tonight,"_ the Kaiou mistress's voice brightened and she continued, _"We're having dinner with the Tenous' tonight."_

Michiru sighed. She knew what was coming. The girl played with her aqua tresses and twirled them around her fingers as she replied, "Okaa-san, I thought we have been through this countless times. I am not interested in boys. Or men, for that matter."

"_I do know that, dear. It's just a simple dinner, hime."_

She frowned at the thought that 'simple dinner' and spoke again, "Okaa-san, I know very well what Otou-san and you are planning. You are trying to marry me off to some man that I have not even met and will never ever fall for. This is just not-

"_Right,"_ the voice at the end of the other line finished for her. _"Hime-chan, please, we're doing this for you. Do it for us too. We need the Tenous' support. And I'm sure Tenou-kun is a nice boy. After all, you won't know until you try, isn't it?"_

Her mouth opened, but no words came. It was pointless to argue on when her mother put it across in that manner. Releasing her hold on her aqua locks, her ocean eyes closed in defeat as she answered, "Where is this dinner going to be held at?"

Putting the receiver back in its place, she sighed again. She knew her parents loved her very much and for them to have made a choice like that meant it was a very important matter, but… To be marrying a total stranger, a man no less, was a little too demanding for her. She rubbed her temples and sighed for the third time. Maybe a good swim would do the job of ridding her of her problems for a while. Having decided that, she walked back into her room to change into her swimsuit.

* * *

"I'm engaged."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, Haru, hang on a sec here. You're _what_?!" Hiroki shot Haruka a look of disbelief as he squatted in front of his sulking friend, searching those familiar teal eyes for a hint of mischief of any kind to make sure that he wasn't pulling his leg.

"Hiro, how many times must I tell you this? Get out of my face before I kick your sorry ass," shoving his friend out of his face, Haruka growled audibly. The situation was clearly showing that he was pissed off and the looks of anger and frustration in his eyes were obviously saying something along the lines of 'touch me and you die'. Throwing off his gloves onto the toolbox beside him, he cast a glance at the clock which read '17:48', and repeated himself, "I'm engaged."

"Okay, let me guess," Hiroki placed his chin onto his thumb and index finger, striking a thinking pose which he thought was cool and took a deep breath as he continued, "Your father thinks you've been messing around too much and now he's making you get married to some ugly but rich snobby preppy girl who's going to be _all_ over you the moment you meet and she'll be trying to seduce and flirt with you every single moment after your parents are gone- no wait, scratch that. She'll be trying to seduce and flirt with you even when your parents are around. After all, the great Tenou Haruka is irresistible." He took another deep breath as he finished the long sentence half jokingly, winking at the ticking time bomb who was half leaning and half sitting on the bonnet of his own convertible.

"You're half right," the blond murmured unwillingly, sighing in defeat while he made no move to explain himself any further until the brown haired man spoke again

"What do you mean I'm half right?" the brown haired man pressed on, urging the blond boy to explain himself.

"Well, I haven't even met the girl yet, so we can't really assume that she's some ugly rich snobby preppy girl. My old man wasn't thinking that I was messing around too much actually. He's actually making me marry the girl so that we can merge our companies for the '_greater good_' if you put it in his words. _But_, you're right about one thing. I, Tenou Haruka, am simply irresistible," replied Haruka confidently as he ran a hand through his hair, smirking arrogantly at his friend who was cheering his ass off at the blond teenager's last remark.

"Glad to have you back, arrogant bastard," laughed the brown haired man as he casually slung an arm around his buddy's shoulders.

"Glad to be back, annoying asshole," Haruka relaxed and punched the man playfully in the arm before returning to whatever he was working on before he left the garage. Sliding back under the car he was working on, his façade of carelessness faded away as he frowned. 'What if she finds out that I'm not who I am? Damn the geezer, always deciding things on his own.' Hiroki laughed and made his way out of the garage for what seemed like minutes before returning with a couple of sandwiches in his hands.

"Haru, what's the name of the lucky girl?" Hiroki asked as he leaned onto the wall, attacking the sandwiches with his teeth while waiting for a reply which would be coming from under a car.

"How should I know if I never asked? The only thing I heard about her is that she's violinist my age," Haruka replied, suddenly sitting up as if remembering something as he managed to hit his head against the car for the second time of the day and cussed at his mistake.

Hiroki burst out in laughter and spurted out small bits of the sandwiches before he moved to wipe tears from his hazel brown eyes. "Dude, you're being waaaaaaay too funny today. Swear I've never met anyone as klutzy as you are today my entire life. Right, so what did you say she did again?"

"Man, fix that habit of eating and laughing at the same time. It's gross. Anyway, I said that she's a violinist my age. That's all I know about her." Haruka slid out from the car and threw the spanner back into the tool box which was lying beside the vehicle he was working on and raised an eyebrow at his brown haired friend who suddenly widened his eyes in surprise and struck his palm with the underside of his fist as he exclaimed in excitement, "Kaiou Michiru!"

"Damn, bud, you are one lucky guy! That's one rare catch you've got there! Seiya will be in for a surprise!" Hiroki laughed and clapped his buddy on the back, congratulating him for having 'captured' a gorgeous beauty like that.

'That's only if I …'

Haruka groaned. A commitment was the last thing he needed, especially at the age of nineteen. The damn geezer had to be out of his mind when he made a decision like that without consulting the 'groom' in question.

"Yeah, and Kou'll be thrilled… To see me get engaged to Kaiou Michiru…" Haruka sat on the glider and rested his chin on his fist, looking bored and troubled. Why did trouble always seem to go his way even when he did nothing to warrant them? With one last glance at the clock, he swore as the last digit hit '0', signaling that it was already '18:00', which was the time for him to leave. Reluctantly, he pulled himself away from the vehicle as he removed the jumpsuit in the locker room before hopping into his convertible and speeding home.

'Maybe… Just maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all…'

* * *

Pulling up his prized yellow convertible outside the hotel, he tossed his keys to the bellboy and handed the man a ten-thousand yen bill as he winked, "Take care of my baby, will ya?"

Dressed in a white collared shirt with black business suit, he adjusted his gold tie before running a hand through his dirty blond hair as a habit and entered the restaurant while his teal orbs scanned the tables for his father's distinctive graying blond hair.

"May I help you sir?" said a waitress from the restaurant, blushing as she approached the blond racer.

He turned around quickly, smiling at the waitress as he addressed her.

"Yes, of course. I have a reservation here by the name of Tenou. By the way…" he paused while casting a glance at the girl's nametag before winking at the blushing girl who went weak in the knees and leaned closer to the flushing girl before whispering into her ear softly his lips lightly brushing against the tomato-faced girl's ear, "You're rather cute, Katagiri-san. You'll look better if you let your hair down."

"Re-Really?" asked the small blonde as she lit up almost immediately at Haruka's compliment, or rather, flirting technique.

"Ara, you seem to be quite the charmer aren't you, Tenou-kun?" an elegant feminine voice interrupted the conversation from behind, causing him to spin around as he met the owner of the melodic voice.

The handsome blond rested his gaze on the aqua haired goddess, his mesmerizing teal orbs tracing and taking in her soft features slowly before meeting her in the eyes. Her beautiful ocean blue eyes showed a glint of mischief, telling the young man that he had been caught staring. He averted his gaze away from the girl in front quickly, flushing slightly as he tried clearing his dry throat in attempt to rid the air of his nervousness.

"Oh, where are my manners? Sorry for interrupting your moment there, Tenou-kun. I'm Kaiou Michiru, nice to meet you," the violinist bowed after introducing herself and straightened up, the look of mischief never leaving her captivating ocean orbs.

Haruka gulped slightly. Being caught staring isn't a good thing, even if the party being stared at is your soon-to-be bride. What's worse is, he was caught red-handed _while_ flirting with _another_ girl.

Haruka groaned inwardly.

'It _is_ a bad idea after all…'

It's going to be a _long_ night.

_End of Chapter_

Akira: I apologize for my excessive usage of Japanese terms in the story. I just can't help it somehow. So, I'm going to explain them all. (If you did understand the terms that I was using earlier, good for you because you can just skip this section entirely. For those who don't, I would recommend taking a few minutes to read through this kind of short (?) explanation section so as not to cause any confusion. See it as a chance to pick up new knowledge! XD)

Oyaji – An informal way of addressing one's father. (Including his/her own)

Kuso oyaji – Literally, it kind of means, 'shitty old man', or it can be used as, 'damn old geezer/man'. It all depends on how you want it to be actually.

Oku-sama – Normally it refers to one's wife. Here, the maid uses it as a title of respect for the mistress of the household.

Ojou-sama – It is a term of respect normally used to address one's daughter, or a daughter of a high-class family.

Hime-chan – Princess, some explanation.

This section is some sort of an explanation of the suffixes that I may be using throughout the fic, so… pay some attention here or something yeah?

-san – This is a suffix that's used to represent, Mr., Mrs., Miss, or Ms. It can be any of them, also, they can be used as occupational titles as well.

-sama – This is a very formal way of addressing someone. Generally it means almost the same as -san. Sometimes, it is used to address someone of higher status than you are. (Position wise)

-kun – It is hardly used for males who are older than the person using it unless in a teasing tone. (Personal opinion here) Although it is generally meant for boys, some people may use it to address girls younger than themselves. E.g. Mamoru calling Haruka and Michiru, Haruka-kun and Michiru-kun, and sometimes, teachers do use it for female students as well.

-chan – This is normally used when you are addressing someone whom you are very familiar with. It is normally used on girls and hardly used on boys because it is actually a rather indirect way of calling someone cute. In Mamoru's case, Usagi uses it as a form of endearment. Although in fact, most boys would not want to be addressed in this way especially as they grow older.

Note: Don't ask me why I made Haruka a man here, I already gave very obvious hints considering Haruka's gender, it's up to you to read the details yourself. If you've been paying attention, you'd be able to catch the clues pretty easily I think. So there you go.


	2. Dinner, meeting, and invitation?

Disclaimer: Seriously, I wonder, do I have to do this every chapter? This just reminds me of the cruel fact that I don't own Haruka and Michiru at all. -Goes off sulking in the corner-

Akira: Edited! A little note here… _**If**_** there are **_**any**_** transgendered people reading this fic, I'm telling you that I have absolutely nothing against you. What you're about to read is just a little joke I made up; it is not meant to be taken seriously at all. I will apologize if you think it's offending.**

_Chapter 2: Dinner, meeting, and… invitation?_

The ambience in the restaurant was great, simply amazing, as one might have put it as beautiful notes from a violin and a piano on the balcony sounded through the dimly lit restaurant, creating a soothing atmosphere. Michiru glanced up, spotting an exquisite glass chandelier hanging high on the ceiling of the Japanese styled restaurant. 'Queer' was the first word that came to her mind when she looked at that 'out of place' ornament.

Michiru sighed inwardly, feeling undoubtedly bored and as out of place as the chandelier suspending above them. She knew she shouldn't have agreed to appear in the first place. She should've been back at home playing her violin or swimming in the pool. How long was the dinner going to last? Frankly, she had no idea. Her supposed fiancé had excused himself from the table, disappearing into the washrooms fifteen minutes ago and hadn't been back since then. Her concentration was thinning; all her parents and future 'father-in-law' were talking about was simply business, nothing but the contract of merging their companies. Deciding that since the person she was meant to be interacting with wasn't even present at the scene at the moment, she stood up and excused herself away from the table politely as she took a left turn to a door which led to a cliff above the ocean right outside the restaurant.

She paused in her tracks. So _that's_ where he disappeared to. It was funny. Staring at the seemingly broad shoulders of her blond fiancé. Sure, she wasn't interested in men but… there was just something about the blond that she couldn't place her finger on; something that made- no _forced_ her to want to know more about the blond teen who was currently off in his own world, enjoying the strong winds which assaulted him repeatedly, messing his blond hair more than it ever was. It almost felt like he was one with the wind, felt like he was the wind himself. She shivered. Not because of the coldness of the wind, but because of their resemblance of being able to blend in with the elements of nature. Her thoughts soon trailed off to the moment when she first met him.

'_Why did I even agree to this?' Michiru mused as she felt the car came to a stop in front of a luxurious hotel located right beside the ocean. _

"_Ojou-sama, we're here," the chauffeur said in a professional tone as he alighted from the black Mercedes to open the door for the ocean eyed lady. _

"_Thank you, Harada-san," Michiru smiled at the elderly chauffeur as she stepped out from the vehicle, earning a bow from him as he proceeded to drive away from the hotel entrance. _

_A bellboy soon rushed to hold the door open for her as she approached the large western styled doors of the tall building, her high-heels creating a refined rhythm trailing after her. _

_Entering the restaurant, the first thing that drew her attention was the beautiful glass chandelier suspending in the middle of the room from the ceiling of a Japanese styled room. Whoever designed the restaurant had to be a weirdo, she concluded. The next thing that caught her eye was actually a person, a tall young man with blond hair who was flirting with a blonde waitress who was blushing furiously while she looked at his face. _

"_Yes, of course. I have a reservation here by the name of Tenou. By the way…" said the man as he inched closer to the girl._

'_So that's Tenou Haruka,' Michiru thought, a smile graced her beautiful features as she watched on. He bent down, whispering into the girl's ear as she flushed a shade brighter. Michiru took a step forward as she listened in to the conversation with interest. "You're rather cute, Katagiri-san. You'll look better if you let your hair down."_

"_Re-Really?" she heard the blushing girl stammered._

_She wanted to watch on, but decided against it as she interrupted the conversation with a sentence of her own, "Ara, you seem to be quite the charmer aren't you, Tenou-kun?"_

_It was then that she finally saw his face. No words could describe his handsomeness. His amazingly striking teal eyes were tracing her features, she knew it. He was staring at her, and she caught him. She knew that because she saw him averting his gaze hurriedly with his face reddening visibly while he coughed in attempt to clear his drying throat probably to clear the air off of his nervousness. A thought of mischief crossed her mind as she proceeded to introduce herself to the drop-dead-gorgeous handsome teen in front of her, wanting to see more of his amusing reactions. _

"_Oh, where are my manners? Sorry for interrupting your moment here, Tenou-kun. I'm Kaiou Michiru, nice to meet you," Michiru bowed as she finished her introduction and straightened up._

_Sure enough, she noticed the young man gulp slightly realizing or thinking that he was in trouble for flirting with a girl in front of his fiancée. She applauded herself inwardly._

_A job well done._

It was then that Haruka decided to turn around, finding himself once again drawn into and lost in those pools of deep, ocean colored orbs which were…

_Entrancing._

_Captivating._

_Mesmerizing._

Haruka fumbled his mind for the words, the correct words to describe the gorgeous woman standing before him, clad in a greenish blue gown which clung to her body like a second skin, displaying her natural curves as the strong wind blew, accentuating her blue eyes and wavy aqua tresses which seemed to be flowing perfectly with the wind.

Haruka wondered; how would it feel like to run his hand through those aqua tresses?

His necktie was loosened, she noticed. He probably felt uncomfortable in those clothing, probably preferring to be dressed more casually. She didn't know the reason why but, the knowledge just came to her naturally.

One second passed, and their gazes finally met. Teal clashed against ocean blue. The pair felt something. It was a feeling that could not be put into simple words. Even so, neither of them showed any emotion that revealed that feeling as the aqua haired goddess approached the handsome pianist.

'Stay cool, Haruka, don't panic. You _are_ irresistible,' the thought ran through his mind as the girl approached.

"So this is where your washroom is?" Michiru teased the young man before her as she leaned against the railing.

He let out a chuckle.

"What do you think?"

She gave him a polite smile and shook her head lightly.

_She's beautiful._

"I came to take a breather from all that business talk," Haruka returned the gesture with a smile of his own and looked up into the skies, staring at the countless stars above. The sky was pretty clear; it showed no hint of having rained in the late afternoon on the day.

Starting to feel the cold, Michiru wrapped her arms around herself and shivered a little while she watched the waves of the ocean assault the beaches below. A jacket draped around her shoulders a few seconds later and she basked herself in the warmth that the jacket was providing. She didn't know why, but she was enjoying the moment right beside this _guy_ who she's not supposed to be interested in since she had a thing for girls.

"Thank you, Tenou-kun," she thanked him for the jacket apparently.

"It was no problem, Kaiou-san," he answered, perfectly acting out the role of the gentleman.

"I'm sorry to be saying this to you Tenou-kun but I am not interested in men," she blurted out on impulse and continued, "Therefore I do not have the intention of marrying you."

It was weird. At least for her, since she shouldn't be telling her father's business partner's son that she wasn't romantically interested in men and that she didn't want to marry him but… she did it anyway. Haruka wasn't sure why but he felt a pang of contradicting emotions mixed with excitement and disappointment hit him as he listened to the woman's words. She expected a harsh comment and an angry outburst from him which surprisingly, never came. What came instead was a look of agreement and acceptance. Words of comfort never came though; in fact no more words were spoken after her confession.

Haruka chuckled again, hiding the faint hint of disappointment in his voice skillfully and replied, "Kaiou-san, I came here without the intention of getting married to you either. If possible, I would prefer if we never met again."

The Kaiou heiress nodded her head in agreement, "I'm glad we see eye to eye on this matter. Well, I think we've been out here for too long. Our parents must be wondering where we went."

He laughed a little; his teal eyes glimmering in the dark as he adjusted his necktie again, offering his arm in a gentlemanly manner to the lady beside him and said softly, "Well, I'm glad that you agree. Shall we go then?"

Taking his arm gratefully, she looked up into those glimmering eyes and smiled earnestly, "Yes, let's."

* * *

"Where have you been, Haruka? How could you have left Michiru-chan alon-

An 'o' shape formed on Toshihiko's mouth as he shifted his gaze from his son's face to the beautiful young woman who was donning a black jacket beside him, and realization dawned upon him that the two were together the entire time.

Breaking the silence, Kaiou Ryuuji cleared his throat to gain the attention of the people around the table and suggested, "Haruka-kun, I believe you play the piano?"

Turning his attention to the man with grayish green hair he nodded quickly and answered with a quick 'yes' before looking at the man questioningly.

"Then, might I propose, a violin-piano duet between the both of you?" Kaiou Yukiko spoke this time, standing up from her seat as she gestured towards the black grand piano located on the balcony outside of the restaurant.

The blond boy raised his left brow. "Here, right now?"

The three of them nodded, sharing knowing smiles at one another as they looked at the teens expectantly.

"What do you say, Kaiou-san?"

Michiru placed a finger on her lip, as if deep in thought for a few seconds before replying the question with a nod of agreement and a mischievous smile on her face.

With the clearance to go, Haruka offered his arm for the second time for the day as the pair strolled gracefully towards the musicians who were currently taking a break from playing.

"What do you think, Kaiou-san? They get along well, don't they?" the older Tenou nodded approvingly at the pair who were making their way towards the instruments and musicians.

"Yes, of course, Tenou-san. I'm glad this turned out well. I look forward to our cooperation," the male Kaiou replied as he took a sip of his drink, smiling gently at his wife who placed her hand on top of his.

* * *

Haruka sat himself on the piano bench as he placed a finger on the key and tested the softness of the keys. He sent a glance at the violinist, a look which obviously said, 'Play whatever you want, I'll improvise.'

A silent nod from Michiru signaled his cue to begin as he closed his eyes, slowly taking in the beautiful sounds emitting from the violin. Thus, began the duet.

_Her fiddle is so delicate, yet so powerful at the same time… She's totally amazing._

The feeling was ecstatic, he felt like he could never get enough… Suddenly, he felt a change in her rhythms. It felt distorted, but… he refused to give in to the taunt. He picked up his pace, his fingers running through the keys like water running through a flowing river.

_His notes are telling a unique story… He's good._

Images of water ripples flashed in her mind as she slowed down her pace this time, challenging the pianist to match her pace as she changed the rhythm unmethodically.

_A challenge huh? Great, he loves challenges._

They became so engrossed in their playing that they ignored every bit of their surroundings, each focusing their undivided attention towards the other's rhythms. They were engulfed in their world of music. A world where no one was allowed to trespass.

With the last chord of the duet sounding loudly through the restaurant, Haruka released the pedal from his foot and opened his teal eyes slowly to meet the gaze of the ocean eyed goddess. The sight of her panting a little and the way that her hair clung to her slightly sweaty forehead from the intense performance was both breathtaking _and_ unbearable. Mustering all the sanity left in him, he managed to curve his lips into a small smile, never taking his eyes off the aqua haired girl.

It was at that moment that Michiru realized that she was slightly attracted to the blond before her. To say that this young man was different from all her other suitors, was a big understatement. Even with that running through her mind, she could spend no time thinking at all, her eyes were simply drawn towards his beautiful teal orbs; those beautiful teal eyes that make her want to stare at them forever and she knew that she would never get sick of them.

Unbeknownst to the teenagers on the balcony, a crowd had formed around the sliding doors, silence befalling the whole of the restaurant as everyone stared at them with their jaws dropped at the magnificently fantastic performance by the teens on the balcony. A loud roar of applause snapped them back into the current world as they bowed to the crowd, Michiru taking Haruka's arm again as they walked towards their parents.

"I'd like to play together another day, Kaiou-san. You were amazing."

_Oh what was he saying? Look at what he's gotten into…_

"Thank you, Tenou-kun. I could say the same for you."

They returned to their table together, their parents still shocked at the wonderful performance.

The duo looked at each other and laughed knowingly. Who knew the presidents of Tenou Corp. and Kaiou Engineering were actually capable of making faces like that?

* * *

It was a peaceful afternoon, or so he thought. The peacefulness was destroyed by a gale of laughter which filled the room after Haruka had described his first encounter with the famed violinist the night before.

"Ahahahaha! You were _what_?" Hiroki roared in laughter, clutching his stomach as he did so. "Oh Haru, that was classic. What a long lasting first impression you gave her. You are the most awesome man on earth. Really, I've got to take my hat off you."

He grunted in response and swatted the hand that was patting him on the back away in annoyance, his eyes lighting up at the hilarious memory which concerned his brown haired buddy hugging a stranger as he retorted, "Compared to you, I'm just not as awesome. You mistook an ugly transvestite for Miyako and she ignored you for a total of two weeks and that alone, my friend, is enough to make me hand it all over to you." Haruka gave him a cocky grin and smirked.

Well, it seemed that that move was the most effective method to totally shut the brown haired man up because Hiroki went totally silent in a matter of seconds.

"Bastard, do you have to remind me of that every time I find a chance to laugh at you?" Hiroki's shoulders slumped in defeat as he broke the silence, plopping down to a seat beside the blond.

"Of course, who did you think you were talking to?" Haruka smirked arrogantly.

"Aw dammit, why's that?" he urged on.

"Because you-

"Are so damn annoying," another voice finished for Haruka as he jerked his head up in surprise, looking for the source of the voice. He narrowed his eyes dangerously at the tall figure standing near the shutter of the garage before finally breaking into a wide grin and said, "Hey buddy! Haven't seen you in a while, Kou. The last time I checked, you weren't a mind reader."

"Hey there, Seiya, welcome back," Hiroki grinned at the man and received one in reply.

"Hey Hiro, it's good to be back. By the way, I'm not one, Haru. I just happen to be able to read your mind. For your information, I'm still a musician," Kou laughed as he approached the two young men in the garage, patting the both of them on the shoulders as he sat down with them.

The dark haired man grinned, "I heard, by the way."

"What did you hear? And dude, aren't you supposed to be in Canada right now?" Haruka could only give a languid reply and a smile with his attempt to change the topic. He's got a really bad feeling about where the topic was going to end up…

"Haru, don't try to change the topic. I know you long enough to know what you're attempting. I meant the news of your engagement to Kaiou Michiru," at that very moment, his smile faltered and he guiltily looked away from his best friend.

* * *

Kaiou Michiru sighed as images of a dashing blond invaded her mind for the nth time of the day.

Tenou Haruka, huh?

The handsome face that invaded her mind was both masculine and feminine at the same time. Which one was it? She couldn't really decide. It didn't really matter. She was impressed and attracted to him. That's what she knew. There weren't any pianists who could keep up with her pace before; Tenou Haruka was the first person to ever perform in such harmony with her and the first to accept her challenges head on. Not that she had ever tried challenging anyone else like what she did before.

Tenou Haruka… Just who- No, what is he? She had to know.

Perhaps her mother was right about giving a normal relationship a try, or even trusting and falling for men for that matter.

"Michiru-san!" an unfamiliar voice rang through the halls, interrupting her train of thoughts as she whipped her head around to meet the owner of the voice in the eyes.

"Ara," she replied in surprise and set her violin back in its case while tending to the new presence in the practice room, "Seiya-kun, aren't you supposed to be in Canada for your new album production?"

"That's right; I flew back immediately when I heard the news of your engagement. Oh well, there goes my chances with you," said Seiya laughingly while giving her a mock pout of disappointment.

She laughed politely at his expression and replied to his flirt with one of her own accompanied by a slight wink, "Ara, I never knew you were interested in me like that, Seiya-kun. You still have a chance, you know. I'm engaged, Seiya-kun, not married yet."

"Surely you jest, Michiru-san. I'm sure whatever you feelings have for me is completely platonic," he released a hearty laugh and continued, a little more seriously this time. "Actually, I'm here to propose to you."

"Oh? What sort of proposal, you must state, Seiya-kun. It's rather easy for people to get the wrong idea," said Michiru as she smiled at the tall young man standing before her.

"Ah, my apologies, Michiru-san, rest assured that it's not a marriage proposal," the dark haired man grinned as he spoke again, "I wanted to know if you would be interested in a collaboration. I wrote a new piece and I'm very confident that _you_ are the only one who will be able to pull it off perfectly. However, if you're busy, I understand."

"That would be great, Seiya-kun. I believe I have nothing scheduled for the time being. It'd be a pleasure working with you," Michiru's smile widened and asked, "Do you have the sheets with you right now? I'd like to take a look at it as soon as I can."

"Of course, I came prepared. Here you go." Seiya laughed good-naturedly and whipped a stack of music sheets out from the briefcase he was carrying and handed them to Michiru.

"Oh… you have a part for a pianist?"

"Yes, I do. I've already got someone in mind. Do you have any pianists that you'd like to recommend?"

"In fact, I do. I think I have just the right person for the part."

"That'll be great! Why not we arrange for a practice session and bring the pianists we have in mind and then do a selection?"

"I'm fine with it, but I think I'll have to arrange for a meeting with him before the practice session."

"Yes, of course, Michiru-san. It's a deal then. Yikes, I have to be going soon, or I'll have to risk my manager coming after me with a cleaver," he joked and waved to the blue eyed girl as he hopped off the stage.

"See you around, Seiya-kun," Michiru returned the wave and sat down at the edge of the stage.

'Tenou Haruka-kun… would he accept my invitation?'

* * *

"No," he replied flatly.

"_Why?"_

"I'm not interested and you know it, Kou."

"_Okay, what do I do to get you interested?"_

"Hmmm… Good question. Why not you leave me alone and maybe I'll think about it?"

"_Anyway, rehearsal's scheduled for the next Friday. I _know _it's off season now, so don't pull any tricks. Hope you'll come."_

"I said I'll think about it."

"_Okay, fine."_

_Click._

"Oi! Tenou, there's a fine lady looking for you! Don't go cheating on your gorgeous fiancée now!" the voice laughed crudely as Haruka cursed the man for his teasing tone. Removing himself from the circuits, he entered the locker area and froze, meeting the gaze of the person standing before him.

"Kaiou-san?"

"Hello, Tenou-kun, we meet again."

The aqua haired woman bowed a little in greeting and smiled at the blond racer. Haruka smiled meekly at his fiancée and a single thought ran through his mind immediately.

'What is _she_ doing here?'

_End of Chapter_

Akira: Here you go. It's the second chapter. I think it's a little off standard. Or in other words, not up to standard in a way. This is the first time I updated so quickly and I'm rather proud of it. XD well, about the not up to standard thingy, you can't say I didn't warn you so... Yeah, that's it. And right, I want to say this. The reason I use a male pronoun for Haruka is because in everyone's opinions in the story, Haruka is a guy. I also use it in her own opinion because that was the way she was brought up to be. But I'm pretty sure that I won't be using it for the whole of the story. (Truth to be told, I can't get used to it either XD)


	3. And I wonder

Disclaimer: Alright, I'll cut to the chase and do this stupid thing over and over again. I don't own Sailor Moon, period. However, I do own a couple of my OCs and this silly little plot.

Akira: I'm thankful for your reviews, people. Also, I'm glad that you guys didn't mind the low-standard of the previous chapter. I was worrying about it actually. Well, back to the point. Here's the third chapter. I'm being a little evil to Haruka here, but… You'll see. XD

_Chapter 3: And I wonder…_

Confusion flashed for a moment in the blond racer's eyes as he came face to face with his supposed fiancée. Taking no longer than two seconds to regain his composure, he placed his hands on both sides of the young woman's head and leaned partially against his hands, leaving an arm's length distance between the both of them and trapping the beautiful violinist between himself and the locker behind her.

"Kaiou-san, I don't mean to be rude but, I don't think you have any business with me here in the locker room, or do you?" the blond raised an eyebrow playfully and smirked at the gorgeous violinist who tried not to giggle at the tall racer's suggestive question.

_Two can play that game._

"Maa, what are you talking about, Tenou-kun? I was merely here to invite you to tea," Michiru stated in mock surprise as her beautiful eyes met Haruka's striking teal orbs mischievously, her lips slowly curving into a sly smile as she continued, "what could you possibly be insinuating?" Finishing her sentence, she raised one of her hands to grab the teal eyed man by the jumpsuit collar lightly and closed the distance between them so agonizingly slow that even the most patient man on Earth would've broken his fishing stick in frustration. Finally, she paused in her position a few centimeters away from her fiancé's lips with her strawberry mint flavored breath dancing on them, the smile still plastered onto her face.

The teen racer's blood pulsed through his veins like water gushing through a broken dam. He could feel his cheeks gradually heating up bit by bit as he searched his disrupted mind for a suitable response to her questions. There was no way for him to focus; not when she was only a breath away. If anyone were to walk in on them, they would be all over the papers tomorrow. He could see the _wonderfully fabulous _caption of their picture in his mind.

'**Locker room rendezvous? Rising star racer T.H. and mysterious violinist K.M. caught in the act!'**

If that ever happened, the marriage would be highly inevitable, and he was trying really hard to put a stop to that… Haruka realized that God had decided to play his worst pranks on him when the door to the room flung open and revealed a gaping mechanic who he didn't know and a grinning Shiratani Hiroki with an excited look on his face which said 'I knew this would happen'. In that very second, images of lightning striking in the darkened skies, heaven falling to earth and hell freezing over flashed in his mind.

_It's all over. He'll definitely be married now. There wasn't even any room for excuses, was there?_

Haruka literally bounced away from the violinist who had her back leaned against the lockers in reflex, clumsily coming up with a lame excuse to get rid of any weird ideas the mechanic and Hiroki had in their heads and tried waving the matter off nonchalantly, "I was only looking for a grain of sand that got into Kaiou-san's eyes. Isn't that right, Kaiou-san?"

The look that Hiroki had on his face was practically bad news and he knew that a whole week of teasing was sure to come. Knowing Hiroki, he'd never let the poor blond racer live the matter down for at least a week or two. Michiru watched the blond fluster and send her a call of backup with a hint of amusement in her eyes before deciding to give her reply, "I wonder about that, _Haruka-kun._"

Michiru's sly smile surfaced again and Hiroki's smug grin widened evidently as Haruka stared at the marine beauty in disbelief, suddenly deciding that both his racetrack buddy and his stunningly attractive 'fiancée' were actually devil incarnates involved in an evil conspiracy to get him married to her despite what she said about not wanting to marry him. A clear of throat by a fifth presence in the locker area saved Haruka from any further embarrassment and Haruka silently thanked the person who decided to intervene with the… embarrassing situation.

Masaru quickly shooed the dazed young mechanic and Hiroki away from the scene, warning them not to spout a single word to anyone else that wasn't present before anything arises and gave Haruka a fatherly smile as he patted the younger man on the shoulder and said, "Haruka-kun, you should probably bring the lady to somewhere nice and wait until it is nighttime before you engage in such… pleasurable activities."

Haruka flushed a bright red in that instant, gaped at the older man in horror and the first thing that went through his mind was, '_who_ the _hell_ are you and what have you done with Masa oji-san?!' Nevertheless, he shook his head and explained himself frantically, "No, no, you got it all wrong, Masa oji-san! Who in the right mind would do things like that in _here_? I would've chosen a better place!"

"Ara, I had no idea you were so bold, Haruka-kun," Michiru giggled and it took a great amount of will power to not burst out in laughter at the priceless expression on Haruka's handsome face which had him opening and closing his mouth like a goldfish while no words escaped from it.

"No, that's not it either! I was only-

Unable to take it anymore, Masaru let out a loud snort and broke into laughter and moved to wipe a tear from his eyes with Michiru joining in with a light chuckle a few moments later. The blond stared at them in confusion for a couple of seconds before letting the situation sink deep into his head.

"Gomen, Haruka-kun, I couldn't help it when I saw your face," the elderly man let out yet another small laughter and then collected himself again.

The aqua haired beauty too, apologized for the teasing with sincerity in her voice and bowed to the rotund man in a polite greeting, "Konnichiwa, Amamiya-san, forgive me for not introducing myself earlier. I am Kaiou Michiru, it's a pleasure meeting you sir."

The man returned the gesture politely and beamed at the beautiful young woman as he replied a little jokingly, "Ah, it's very nice to meet you too Kaiou-san. Toshi has been talking about you ever since that meeting you had. Bragging about a beautiful future daughter-in-law obviously; if I was thirty years younger I might have asked for your hand in marriage myself, Kaiou-san."

"My, I feel so flattered. Oh please, Michiru will be fine. There is no need for such formalities," she smiled at the fatherly figure who answered to her request easily.

"Very well, if that is the case, Michiru-chan, I would've preferred if you addressed me as Haruka-kun does."

Remembering what she went to the racetracks for, she spoke again, "In that case, I'll take you up on that offer, Masa oji-san. By the way, may I borrow Tenou-kun for the day?"

The man turned straightened himself and pushed Haruka lightly in the back, causing the teen to move slightly towards the ocean eyed violinist before replying with a nod and said in his deep voice, "Of course you may. I was planning to give him the day off myself. Go on, Haruka-kun, you don't want to disappoint a gorgeous young lady who came this far to ask you out."

Having recovered from his previous embarrassment, Haruka nodded his thanks at the elderly man, grabbed his jacket and led Michiru out the locker areas as he caught a few mechanics catcall and whistle at the both of them on their way out while he sent them a childish glare.

"I'm really sorry for that, Tenou-kun," somehow, Michiru felt really bad for putting the blond teen on the spot earlier and felt the need to apologize to him once more, but his next word took her by surprise.

"Haruka," said Haruka, his memory flying back to the moment where she had called him by just his name itself, remembering how well it rolled off her tongue so naturally.

Knowing full well what the young man had meant, she replied as well, "Only if you do the same."

Haruka flashed a genuine smile at the violinist and threw on his jacket before opening the door to the passenger's seat for the Kaiou heiress and then hopped into the driver's seat as he started to run the engine.

"So… Where to, Michiru-san?"

* * *

About twenty minutes later, the blond racer found himself seated beside the glass pane in a small but bustling coffeehouse filled with friendly waitresses and a couple of rowdy customers. It wasn't that the friendliness of the people that he was uncomfortable with though; rather, it was the unreadable look in those deep blue eyes which was directed at him that he had problems with. He shifted a little in discomfort under the gaze. Being out alone with Kaiou Michiru was definitely not good news, especially when he had decided not to see her again. Meeting her alone only weakened his resolve to break off the engagement between the both of them. In fact, all that had been occupying his mind for the past few days was images of her and… her alone. The contradicting feelings that he had inside of him was driving him crazy, and he knew that it was only a matter of time before he actually does go crazy. A part of him was dying to get out of the place and never see the beautiful girl again, another part was telling him to stay and listen to what she had to say and just enjoy her company for the day. And figuratively speaking, he was a lost little moth that was attracted to the scorching flames.

Michiru could only smile inwardly when she noticed the adorable expression on the blond teen's face as she focused her gaze onto him. She almost wanted to laugh when his look of confusion suddenly changed to a frown, and then into something completely unreadable in a matter of seconds. It didn't take long for her to realize that she had a newfound hobby; watching Tenou Haruka. The thought of wanting to watch him merely confused her as she knew that she wasn't into men at all. Even so, it was interesting how he could do a personality flip right there and then; changing from a playful flirt into an incredibly shy klutz with a clumsy mouth when he got teased in return. Despite that, he was an incredible pianist who could draw life into the music he creates with simple and yet delicate touches from his fingertips onto the keys on the piano. In a way, his touches were… vaguely feminine.

It was something that was unexplainable that tied him to the seat. He knew very well that he would not be leaving any time soon. He sighed and gave in instead. The aqua haired beauty in front of him seemed to have noticed his inner battle as he found concerned blue eyes resting their gaze upon him. He smiled in reflex and spoke, "Do you have an idea of what you want to have, Michiru-san?"

"Oh yes I have. What about you?" she closed the menu that was in her hands and placed them on the table gingerly.

"I think I'll have a coffee. I'm not really hungry," Haruka too, shut the menu in his hands and waved for a waitress.

After placing their orders, the awkward silence fell upon the couple as both thought of what to say to the other.

"It's a nice place," Haruka started hesitantly as he looked into those beautiful blue eyes that reflected nothing but emptiness.

"Indeed, it is. It has a warm atmosphere, don't you think? A perfect place to heal people like me who return to a cold place which I call home everyday," she frowned slightly, and then curved her lips into a little smiled as she noticed the troubled look on the blond man's handsome features. She brought a hand up to muffle her giggles, gaining the attention of the racer and continued, "I'm only joking, Haruka-kun. Don't take what I said to heart."

"You're lying," stated Haruka flatly as he narrowed his teal gaze carefully at the woman who sat across him. His tone had not only shocked the aqua haired girl but himself too. He shook his head and pondered hard. What had possessed him to say something as rude as that? Deciding that it wasn't much use to think about it, he bowed his head in shame and apologized for his rude comment.

The mysterious girl merely smiled at him in response waved the matter off easily. Even though she did not show it on the outside, she was rather surprised that he actually saw through her words with such ease.

'Just what sort of person are you really, Tenou Haruka-kun?'

The rest of the lunch carried on in silence with neither bringing up the subject again.

* * *

The yellow convertible skidded to a stop outside the brightly lit path of the Kaiou compounds and the handsome racer removed his seat belt to alight from his car. Walking over to the passenger's side, he opened the door gentlemanly and stepped aside, allowing the violinist to alight from the vehicle as well.

The aqua haired girl thanked the Tenou boy for his kind gesture and took the arm he offered politely as they walked towards the main building on the compounds. The racer took in his surroundings quickly as they passed a skillfully sculpted white marble fountain of three beautiful mermaids swirling around a floating crystal ball that was brought up by the strength of the water, singing and playing with their harps happily.

"Don't they look so carefree?" came the quiet voice of Michiru from his side. Apparently, she had noticed him looking at the fountain.

Meeting her ocean deep eyes with his teal ones, he saw the emptiness once again. He nodded at her comment and looked up into the star filled night sky as he voiced his doubts, "But are they really, Kaiou-san?"

"Michiru," she corrected and he watched her shrug from the corner of his eyes as she continued to speak, "You'll have to find that out for yourself, Haruka-kun."

Bringing his gaze away from the beautiful night sky, he tilted his head to face her partially as he replied gracefully with a confident smirk on his lips, "Perhaps I shall."

The two of them resumed in their short journey towards the main house as the blond boy walked ahead of his 'fiancée', linking his hands behind his head in a boyish manner with the aqua haired girl trailing after him, a small but evident smile on her pale pink lips.

"Thank you for spending the day with me, Haruka-kun. I had fun today," the violinist turned to face the handsome blond as they stood at the doorstep of the mansion.

"You're welcome, Michiru-san. I had fun too."

"…"

"…"

A few seconds passed in silence and the blond racer laughed nervously. Unable to bring himself to kiss her good night, he held out his hand for her to shake instead.

Raising a brow his chosen course of action, she decided to play along and shook his hand good night.

"Well then, good night, Michiru-san."

"Good night to you too, Haruka-kun."

"Let's hang out again someday," he smiled somewhat hopefully at the girl, waiting for a response from her.

The ocean eyed girl returned his smile and replied nicely, "Yes, let's go somewhere again someday."

With that, the young man turned his back towards the girl and walked away happily from the main house and towards his car which was parked right outside the Kaious' property. Humming a song as he opened the door, he stopped suddenly in his actions as what he said a few minutes ago sank into his mind like heavy lead.

'Let's hang out again someday.'

_Oh god, what had he done?_

And after he told himself that Kaiou Michiru was _off limits_…

* * *

Shutting the door behind her, the young Kaiou heiress came face to face with a happy looking Kaiou Yukiko. Apparently, her mother knew who she was out with. After all, the compound was filled with hidden cameras everywhere for security reasons. Knowing what was about to come, the younger Kaiou lady sighed and said, "Tadaima, Okaa-san."

Giving her daughter a knowing smile she replied cheerfully, "Okaeri nasai, hime-chan."

And as expected, the inevitable question came.

"So how was the date with Haruka-kun?"

Removing her heels from her small sandy feet, she placed them on the shelf beside the door and walked into the living room. She almost groaned at the question. There they go again. Knowing her mother, the 'boys aren't that bad' talk would be starting in no time. And it did.

* * *

Carefully maneuvering the steering wheel into a sharp turn down the block, the Tenou heir smiled as he ran with the wind.

Once again, the yellow convertible skidded to a halt in an underground parking lot as Haruka hopped out of his prized possession, pressing a button on his control to lock the doors of his car with a sound 'beep'.

Reaching the doorsteps of his own apartment, he reached into his pockets and fished for the keys to his home. After opening the door, he strutted into his bedroom and fell onto the queen sized bed, not even bothering to kick off his shoes or take off his jacket. Reaching for a pillow that was a few feet away from him, he grabbed it and buried his head into it. With a vexed groan, he flung the pillow across the dark room in frustration and walked towards the balcony.

He closed his eyes and relaxed immediately as he felt the wind caressing his unruly blond hair. Once the wind died down, he thanked the wind for consoling him and opened his eyes to look up at the skies once again thinking, 'The stars are beautiful tonight. I wonder if she's looking at them right now.'

Somehow, knowing that they live under the same sky brought peace to his soul. His lips curved into a slight smile as he let her name escape his lips in a soft whisper.

"Kaiou Michiru, huh…?"

The aqua haired girl sighed somewhat wistfully as she leaned against the railing of the veranda outside her room, the shining stars in the beautiful sky reflected in her ocean orbs as she sense the wind playing with her oceanic aqua locks. At that moment, it seemed to her that the ocean was not the only thing that gave her peace, because right there and then, the wind was having the same effect on her like the ocean did. It was a mysterious feeling, and she did not want to let the feeling go anywhere else. A sudden rustle of the papers jolted her from her peace as a loose sheet from her scores flew out onto the veranda and then somewhere else into the night.

Looking at the score sheets, she frowned. There seemed to be something she had forgotten. It was a few moments later that she remembered. She had forgotten to invite the Tenou boy to the practice. Tucking a loose strand of aqua lock behind her ear, she decided that the deed could be done another day. After all, they both decided to… 'Hang out' was it? She shrugged off the question that was directed to herself and fell onto her soft bed with a soft 'thud' as she fell into a deep sleep after the long day they spent together.

_End of Chapter_

Akira: I am so sorry for the delay. My school schedule was hectic and I didn't have much time to myself at all. (That; and I had a writer's block plus laziness haunting me XD) I'm evil I know. So hate me. Just kidding, don't hate me please. Well, this is the end of the latest chapter and I don't know what I'm doing in here. It's probably super off standard and I can't blame anyone but myself for it lol. Anyway, hope you enjoyed reading it and… have a nice day. Though you're not obligated to leave a review, I'd like it very much if you did though. It'd be good to know what readers think.


	4. I decline But I insist!

Disclaimer: Whatever. Read this in the first chapter. XD

Akira: Hello everybody, I'm back. Terribly sorry for the delay though. So, I'd like to thank everyone for their reviews, be it anonymous or not. Here comes the next chapter.

_Chapter 4: I decline. But I insist!_

"Ohayou, _Haruka-kun_!" chirped Shiratani Hiroki happily while he mimicked Michiru's seductive voice in the lockers a few days before when they were 'caught in the act' and pouted his lips as he made kissing sounds when the blond walked into the workplace.

"Morning to you too, asshole. And _don't_ call me that, you're creeping me out."

"Oh, _Haruka-kun_, why are you so mean to me?" Hiroki exclaimed in a dramatic voice and placed the back of his hand on his forehead, pretending to faint. "I thought you loved me!"

Haruka flipped the finger at his best friend and sent him a death glare hoping to silence him but he received a loud obnoxious laughter from the brown haired man instead. Already at the point of giving up, he groaned and placed his face in his palm while he shook his head.

"Oh god, what wrong did I ever do to deserve this?"

With one dejected sigh, he quickly made his way to the garage to avoid anymore teasing from that moronic best friend of his.

* * *

"Konnichiwa, Seiya-kun," the beautiful violinist gave a slight bow as a greeting towards the dark haired singer who slowly came into view as she walked into the concert hall with an air of elegant grace around her.

"Konnichiwa, Michiru-san," the young singer smiled at the sight of the aqua haired girl and said, "so, has your pianist agreed to perform with us yet? I haven't got a straight answer from the one I was going to ask. I just hope he turns up on the day of the rehearsal."

As he ended his sentence with a hearty chuckle, the female of the two shook her head lightly and replied, "Actually, I haven't had the chance to properly invite him yet. I'll have to make another visit some time during the week. He doesn't seem very busy though. I have to admit, I rarely see anyone play like he does. Not even professionals."

Seiya raised his brow in interest and posed yet another question, "not even professionals? You mean this pianist who even has _the_ Kaiou Michiru singing his praises isn't even a pro pianist?"

The violinist giggled at his comment and defended herself, "I _do_ admire works of other artists as well, Seiya-kun."

"Since you put it that way, I'm looking forward to seeing this rare talent."

* * *

Picking up the phone, he dialed a few numbers on it and hesitated, 'wait, why am I calling her? Kaiou Michiru is off limits, Tenou Haruka! Are you out of your mind?'

Setting the phone down, he massaged the bridge of his nose, hoping to ease the headache which was soon to come. After no longer than a minute, he found himself on the phone once again, only this time, he actually dialed the number of the beautiful violinist and found that the line couldn't be gotten through. He let out a groan of frustration and placed the phone down roughly.

"What the heck am I trying to do?"

* * *

'Hmmm, I wonder if he's busy at the moment…' Michiru set the receiver back in its place and let out a sigh. Placing her chin onto her palm, she looked out the window forlornly. All of a sudden, she remembered the song that they played at the restaurant the other day and begins humming it silently to herself as she imagined how the blond boy ran his fingers so smoothly across the piano keys that it looked like those hands were born to play pianos and nothing else.

He was good looking, and it was a fact that she couldn't deny. It wasn't the looks that attracted her to the Tenou boy but an air of charisma he had around him. What surprised her was what she actually did with the blond teen in the locker room that day. Flirting with a man was something she'd never do in her life, much less a man who she didn't know that well. It was definitely the first time she had openly flirted with a man and oddly enough, it didn't feel weird at all.

Maybe... just maybe her mother was right about the boys/men thing for once after all…

After what seemed like a few minutes later, she looked up at the old ticking clock hanging off the wall of her bedroom. She was supposed to meet her manager to discuss about the coming joint concert with Seiya at three. She removed herself from the window sill that she was sitting on and made her way towards a large oak wardrobe.

'Maybe I'll go look for him after my business is done,' she mused to herself and continued humming.

* * *

"But Michiru-san, are you sure about using an amateur pianist for a concert as important as such?" the bespectacled woman wiped her forehead with a flowery patterned handkerchief and adjusted her round glasses nervously. "Has Seiya-san agreed?"

Even though the restaurant was air-conditioned to the point that people were starting to freeze up, she could not help but perspire at the thought of offending or angering the famous violinist even at the cost of rejecting her proposal about hiring an amateur pianist.

"Are you doubting my judgments, Miho-san?" said the aqua haired teen as she narrowed her beautiful ocean colored orbs at the small woman. Her patience was thinning, they had been going on and on for hours about the pianist that she was going to enlist the help of and being an apparent worrywart like she always was, Ichimura Miho had tried ways and means to dissuade the violinist about employing an unknown pianist to perform on the very same stage as the famous singer/guitarist Seiya Kou.

The manager gulped visibly and lowered her head quickly; for fear that she would receive a stern dressing down from the determined girl who sat in front of her.

"N-No, that's not what I meant but…"

It was then that the violinist decided that enough was _enough_.

She stood from the luxurious chair the restaurant had provided her (courtesy of the restaurant manager who happened to be a huge fan of hers) and placed her hands on top of the dining table with a determined look in her eyes.

"It's decided then. I'll ask him to come on next Friday. Don't worry, Miho-san. We will be doing a selection between them both. Seiya-kun will also be bringing his own pianist along."

She knew she had been defeated the moment the beautiful Kaiou heiress made up her mind but… it was better to try than never, right?

* * *

Adrenaline coursed in his veins, and blood pounded in his ears. It wasn't long before he crossed the finishing line with an unofficial personal record of 02:07:89 for a total of five laps around the track. The Toyota skidded to a stop at the pit, leaving tire traces on the pit tracks and out came the Tenou heir in his racing suit. Cheers and words of encouragement greeted him as he removed the safety helmet, giving his damp blond hair a tousle to get rid of the sweat that collected in his hair.

"Good work, Tenou!"

"Personal record again eh? You're one amazing guy man!"

Muttering words of thanks to the enthusiastic teammates of his, he high fived a few of them before making his way back to his private locker room to take a nice, cold shower.

* * *

Cold droplets of water fell onto the tanned skin of the tall Tenou heir, earning a contented husky sigh from his pale lips as he leant backwards with the cold tiles touching his bareback. The Tenou heir turned the faucet off and grabbed his towel from the stand and wrapped it around himself. He walked towards the mirror, and found striking teal colored orbs staring back at him. He looked at the mirror and ran a hand through his wild blond fringes.

He cussed as the image of the pretty violinist who'd been haunting his mind for days flashed in the mirror. He simply could not help but imagine the gorgeous violinist standing by his side, smiling a smile that was meant for him but no one else at him, his arms holding her shoulders strongly and her slim arms around his waist. How would it feel to run his hand through those beautiful aqua tresses? Would it feel as soft as it had looked to him?

_Kaiou Michiru is off-limits._

He shook his head and dismissed the image from his mind quickly. With one last look at himself in the mirror, he told himself, "Keep that image away from your mind and focus, Tenou."

* * *

"Yo buddy! Seems like you're getting faster and faster day by day," the brown haired man burst into the garage excitedly and grinned at his best friend.

"Heh, that was nothing. I haven't been wasting my time here, you know," the blond boy shrugged, gave his best bud a confident smirk and received a playful punch on the arm and got himself caught in a headlock. The handsome racer let out a throaty laugh and struggled against Hiroki's hold playfully.

"Looks like you're having quite the time there, Haruka-kun," a melodic voice from the shutters of the garage said.

A grown man being caught in the middle of a childish scuffle with his best friend in a garage by the object of his affections and his fiancée no less was definitely embarrassing.

Surprised at her sudden entry, the pair swiftly disentangled themselves from one and other and straightened up as fast as they could while emitting awkward, embarrassed laughs as the aqua haired girl looked on with amusement that was evidently displayed on her delicate features. It wasn't long before she began giggling at their antics which she thought was rather funny.

After taking less than a minute to settle down, she said, "Pardon me for intruding on your best friends only session, but I need to borrow Haruka-kun for a few minutes, Shiratani-san. Do you mind?"

The brown haired man grinned and gave his best friend a light push on the back which sent him walking towards the violinist.

"Sure, go ahead! You can borrow him for as long as you want!"

The blond racer exchanged looks with the other man and mouthed a quick 'what the hell?' as he thought of being alone with the ocean eyed beauty.

"Don't worry, I'll return him soon, Shiratani-san," said the violinist as she smiled at the brown haired man.

"Oh, no worries at all, Kaiou-san. He's all yours, _literally_," Hiro grinned evilly at his best friend.

Michiru smiled at the man's smartass comment and quietly watched on as the blond racer gave his best friend an exasperated glare.

The girl felt a light tug upon her hand and was soon led out of the dirty garage by Haruka who only murmured a quiet "Let's go, Michiru-san."

He refused to meet her eyes, as he knew that the amused glint in her mesmerizing ocean deep eyes hadn't disappeared totally. He was so dead sure that she was going to tease him about the childish moment she witnessed back there if their eyes ever met. It didn't really cross his mind before but, all along, he always had the feeling that he'd known the violinist for years. Even though she might not feel the same way, he simply could not help but think that those feelings were real.

* * *

The pair soon found themselves sitting in the stands of the course looking out at the empty tracks.

"So what brings you here today, Michiru-san?" inquired the curious blond racer as he searched for the answer in the beautiful violinist's eyes.

"Shall we talk about it over a cup of nice, warm coffee?" the violinist asked rather nonchalantly, even though she had surprised herself by her sudden change in decision about asking the handsome racer about the concert directly.

On the other hand, the handsome teen seemed pretty surprised himself by the famous violinist's skillful techniques in avoiding straight to the point conversations. With that, he decided to try his luck at teasing the beautiful aqua haired girl a little by asking, "I thought you told Hiro that you only need me for a few minutes? Or was there something else that you needed me for?"

The suggestive tone in which the blond racer gave was a little provocative, and that little provocation had started the ball rolling like a chain reaction which caused the violinist to return a comment in the most suggestive way possible as she closed in on the blond racer quickly and caressed his cheekbone gently.

"What do you think, Haruka-kun?"

Once again the proximity between them sent his heart pounding hard against his ribcages. The scent of her strawberry scented shampoo filled his nostrils. Butterflies fluttered in his stomach, sending signals to his brain that he should take the chance and run his hand through those soft aqua locks.

Using his quick witted mind, he composed himself internally and poised his question in retaliation, "And I thought Michiru-san was only interested in women?"

"Ara? But that doesn't mean that I am not allowed to flirt with my fiancé, does it? Shiratani-san _did_ say that you were all mine literally after all," with that, the violinist leaned in nearer.

He was so going to murder the brown haired man once he returned from their discussion of whatever it is the violinist wanted to discuss.

They were barely inches apart, and that was a dangerous distance to be away from the violinist for him. Shakily, he raised a hand bit by bit, only to stop in his tracks when the aqua haired violinist pulled away abruptly with a triumphant teasing smile etched on her lips.

The blond racer jumped back quickly as his face colored slowly but evidently. He must've looked like a silly little school girl then; because the violinist looked at him with amusement for a few seconds and then giggled gently. The situation between them always turned out like that. Although he had been the one to provoke the little flirting on his part, it seemed that the violinist was always the one who was in complete control of the situation. He wasn't used to it at all. After all, he had always been the dominant one in his past relationships although they never did last long due to pretty obvious reasons.

The flirtatious nature of his allowed him complete control in situations like that but this time, he could definitely say that Tenou Haruka had finally met his match. Kaiou Michiru was one special person who could render all his defenses useless and break down the walls of his façade. He never blushed in front of anyone. Well, the day in the lockers was definitely a start for him.

"Ahem," he coughed, attempting to break flow of the conversation, wherever it was headed to. "Perhaps we should talk about it over a cup of coffee."

The violinist suppressed a giggle at the blond racer's attempt to change the topic before he got anymore embarrassed.

"Let's go, shall we? I know of this wonderful place which serves really good coffee."

* * *

The café was a small and cozy one. It was a little different from where they had been the other time. Once again, they were seated beside a glass panel with a nice view of the little maple garden. Browning leaves fell from the branches, and a cool autumn breeze blew past, causing the leaves to flutter around before falling to the ground.

'So it's already that time of the year huh?'

"A penny for your thoughts, Haruka-kun?" a melodic voice broke the blond man out of his trance.

"Oh, I'm sorry for spacing out. It's just that the falling leaves reminded me of my mother. It's weird how it reminded me of her, even though I never really knew her," he gave a low chuckle, his gaze still fixated on the falling maple leaves on the other side of where they were seated.

"Your mother?" the aqua haired teen inquired in confusion.

"Ah… Her name's Kaede. She was a very beautiful person," he smiled at the memory of flipping through old albums and tracing his fingers on his mother's face, as if he could feel her warmth under those tiny fingertips.

"I thought you never knew her?"

He turned his gaze back into her ocean colored orbs and smiled in slight embarrassment, "I used to look at her pictures a lot. My father often told me how blessed he was to have married her. So I assumed that she was a good wife and would've been a great mother if not for me."

Haruka's handsome smile faltered a little, but his gaze never wavered.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure she's happy at where she is right now, seeing as how her son has grown so much," Michiru comforted the young racer, giving him a light squeeze on his hand across the table top.

His hand felt warm under her comforting touch, and he smiled at her gratefully, "Thanks."

It wasn't long before their orders came and they started digging in into the pastries that came together with the warm cups of coffee.

* * *

"So shall we move on to the main topic?" the blond teen reached for the white napkin lying on the table and dabbed at his mouth, cleaning away the remnants of crumbs from the apple strudel and coffee from the corner of his lips.

The teenage girl too, reached for a napkin and repeated the Tenou heir's action and answered, "Yes of course. Actually, the reason I called you out today is to ask you if you would like to perform in a concert with me."

"A concert?" asked the confused teen.

"A concert," echoed the Kaiou girl as she nodded. "We have a part for a pianist and I would like to invite you to play as a guest pianist for the concert."

"I'm sorry Michiru-san, but I don't think I'm the suitable person for the job. Besides, aren't there other professional pianists who would love to play for you?" he declined, shaking his head in response.

"There are, Haruka-kun. But it was a whole new feeling when we played that duet together at the restaurant. You are definitely the right man for the job," said Kaiou Michiru, her eyes determined and set.

How could he turn it down, especially when she looked like that? He had never thought that it was so difficult to turn a request down before, but as he looked into her aquamarine eyes, he felt so drawn to it. Those eyes held depth so immense that if someone were to plunge into it, they would never find their way out again. They shone with the determination and pride of a Kaiou, never willing to back down.

He sighed. It was inevitable that he had to accept that request. He nodded, albeit reluctantly and replied with a forced smile upon his handsome face, "Since you insist, I shall accept. When is the rehearsal?"

The determined eyes broke into a smile as she looked at the Tenou heir with thanks, "Thank you Haruka-kun. It means a lot. The rehearsal will be set on the coming Friday, at the Tokyo concert hall."

_Coming Friday…?_

"I'll be there. But I have a condition. We will not see each other anymore after this concert is done. I shall explain to my father that I shall be annulling this engagement," his gaze hardened suddenly.

Pause in silence.

"You got yourself a deal. As I have said before, I don't have the intention of marrying you either, Haruka-kun," replied Michiru with a serious gaze.

A few moments later, the Tenou heir couldn't help but wonder if it was his imagination that he detected a faint hint of disappoint in the violinist's tone as she agreed to his condition.

* * *

Why did it all sound so familiar when the Kaiou violinist mentioned a rehearsal on the coming Friday?

Figuring that it was pointless to think about it, he slumped back onto the bed with his hands behind his head. That wasn't the only thing he had forgotten. There was something else which was eating at him inside as he drove the violinist home earlier in the evening.

What was it?

For minutes he racked his brains for an answer, tracing his memory back to the events of the day before the violinist had paid a little visit to him in the garage.

Suddenly, with a snap of his fingers, he exclaimed, "Shit! I forgot about Hiroki!"

Somewhere in the background, a crude comment of 'Shut the hell up and go to sleep!' rang in the neighborhood for a moment, and soon, the night went into a dead silence again.

* * *

Being teased by Shiratani Hiroki was already a norm for Tenou Haruka. It made no difference as to whether what the matter was about, although the topic frequently circled around a certain famous aqua haired teenage violinist with beautiful long eyelashes as well as very captivating and mesmerizing ocean colored eyes. There was no need to be more obvious that the brown haired man jumped at every single chance to tease his blond, and currently very red in the face best friend who was shaking in sheer irritation.

It had been a rough night for him, considering the fact that he had worked on a project until wee hours into the night, and the striking teal eyes were almost bloodshot, signaling the blatant lack in amount of sleep. Haruka gave a low grunt, acknowledging the existence of the brown haired man who was clinging onto his shoulders and greeting him with a loud 'Ohayou!' in his ears.

It wasn't long before he was being called into the office, courtesy of a phone call from his 'beloved' father again. Only this time, it was something which was really serious.

"Hello?"

"_Haruka."_

"Yes, it's me. What do you want, oyaji?" his tone was of an annoyed one, of all times, he really didn't want to deal with his father at the moment.

"_We have decided a date for your wedding,"_ said the voice at the end of the other line solemnly.

The sleepiness which was so evident in the blond teen's posture disappeared almost immediately as he ejaculated a loud _'WHAT THE FUCK?!'_ in anger, his slumped over posture straightening in an instant.

"_I said mind your language before, young man. Come to my office tomorrow, I'll tell you more about the details then."_

_Click._

This so wasn't happening. There he was, trying to break off any ties he had with the beautiful violinist, and there his idiot of a father went, hastening the process of the marriage which he badly attempted to delay. The blond racer threw a furious glance towards the calendar as he slammed the receiver back in its place.

The dreaded Friday was already approaching, he noted.

'Ah… tomorrow is going to be such a pain in the ass again.'

_End of Chapter_

Akira-kun: Wow, this has got to be the next longest chapter ever since chapter one. I'm kinda proud of it xD Well, I'm terribly sorry for the long wait, I'm deathly afraid that chapter 5 will not be coming anytime soon. I hope you guys will still stick with me, and hopefully, I won't take a year to update zzz. These so called writer's blocks are getting really annoying, so… yeah. See you guys the next chapter, and thanks for reading. Do review if you like. Reviews are like food for authors! xD


	5. But you said

Akira: Hi guys! I'm finally back! Thank you so much for your continuous support and thank you all for your reviews, I'm really glad that there're still people reading this. Without further ado, I present you…

_Chapter 5: But you said…_

"Sit down," commanded the stern voice.

The blond who stood tall before the large oak desk remained standing despite the command, defiance burning in his teal eyes.

"As I have told you over the phone, we've decided on a wedding date for your marriage," said the older Tenou as he looked out of the huge window at the buildings outside with his hands joined behind him, his back facing the younger blond who was fuming in front of the desk and glaring at his father.

"The engagement party will happen on the Christmas ball function. That's when the engagement will be officially announced. It will be a large scale event between the two companies, you _will _be there whether you like it or not. The wedding will be held next spring."

"Oyaji, this marriage will not happen," the blond spat defiantly, and made a turned to leave the room, only to be stopped by the Tenou head.

"I said to sit down, _boy_," Toshihiko commanded once again, his eyes fixated upon the young Tenou heir who refused to sit.

"We have already discussed this time and time again, _Otou-sama_," said the teal eyed racer as he uttered the last two syllables bitterly, reluctantly settling himself into the comfort of the leather chair which held his weight.

"We have indeed," the older man began and gazed into identical teal orbs determinedly, "and it has also been decided through the discussions that you will marry this girl the coming spring."

He tousled his hair in the seat, a habit of his whenever he was frustrated and vexed. The anger was building up inside of him and he knew it, for he was trying to quell that anger and try to talk it out amicably.

"Look here oyaji; I have no intention of marrying her, or anyone else for that matter. This is my life, I have a say in this matter. Kaiou Michiru does not want to marry me either. We have both decided to have this marriage annulled; whether you or the Kaious like it or not," the blond racer finished.

"I'm warning you, _Tenou Haruka. _You will not inherit a single cent if you don't marry Kaiou Michiru," the Tenou head said, his tone was serious and stern.

"To hell with the inheritance then!" Haruka rose from his seat angrily and made his exit as fast as he could.

xxxxx

Tired ocean blue eyes glanced at the clock hanging off the wall. It was almost time for the rehearsal and yet, she simply did not have the motivation or energy to get away from her comforting bed. The news came to her a little all too suddenly. The wedding date was only a good five to six months away. Of course, the joint concert would've ended by then, but it would also be too late for them to do anything about the wedding. It was all too wrong. Too wrong to marry someone she did not love; and too wrong to marry a _man_ she did not love above all that.

It was true that she had taken a liking to the handsome Tenou heir, but it was the liking for a friend, not a lover. There were flirtatious comments flying around sometimes, but that was all there is to it. She hugged the pillow she'd been holding onto closer to her and buried the lower part of her face into it. Solutions formulated in her mind and dissolved as quickly as they came. They were all ideas that would never work in one way or the other.

The tired violinist closed her ocean blue eyes and waited. Just then, the cell phone which was lying right beside her vibrated, bringing her out of her thoughts. Picking up the phone, she took a peek at who the caller was.

'_Caller: Tenou Haruka.'_

He must've received the news too. It seemed to be an urgent call, seeing as how he hadn't hung up yet. Reluctantly, she flipped the cover of the phone open and answered calmly, as she had intended to sound, "Moshi moshi? Kaiou here."

A moment of silence ensued after the words she spoke. He must be thinking of what to say to her.

"Moshi moshi?" she repeated with the intention of urging an answer from the other end of the line.

"_Ah… I'm sorry, this is Haruka,"_ the husky voice spoke unconfidently.

"I believe you already know?"

"_I do. By the way…"_ the voice hesitated for a moment.

She pressed the phone to closer to her ear, anticipating the next words the blond was going to say.

"_I called to tell you that I won't be turning up for the rehearsal as I have something to attend to. I'm sorry Michiru-san."_

The disappointment upon hearing those words were not that much. In the first place, the blond racer never had the interest in performing on stage anyway. With a calm façade that she masked over her slight disappointment, she said, "I see… it's a pity then."

"_There won't be a next time either. I'm really sorry about that… And lastly, I don't think we should be seeing each other anymore. Bye."_

"Bye."

_Click._

She sighed.

Would it have been better if she never saw him again?

xxxxx

The blond teen sat at the edge of his bed, and tossed the cell phone he was holding onto to the side. Returning back to the garage would be good, but it wouldn't be enough to take his mind off the engagement matter either. The only person he wanted to turn to was…

'Wait a minute… Kou said something about a rehearsal the last time I talked to him…'

Reaching for the cell phone he tossed to the side earlier, he dialed the numbers quickly and waited for a few seconds before the call was being picked up.

"_Yo! I've been waiting for your call the entire week, Haru!"_ said the voice from the receiver excitedly.

"Yeah, I just remember you saying something about a rehearsal last week," the blond replied monotonously and began twirling the pen which he found from the bedside table around his fingers.

"_What's the matter with you man? You don't sound too well to me."_

"I'm fine, Kou," he replied again, this time setting the pen back to its place and lying flat down on his back, staring at the ceiling with his teal eyes.

"_You sure?"_ asked the dark haired man over the phone, attempting to reconfirm his best friend's answer.

"Yes I'm very sure. You know, you're starting to sound like an old lady. Did being around Setsuna-san for too long affect you that much?" the teal eyed racer joked.

"_So I'm an old lady huh?"_ said the voice of a woman over the phone.

"Kou! You little traitor!" exclaimed the teal eyed teen while he sat up straight in surprise as muffled laughter sounded in the background. He composed himself quickly and replied quickly, "That was a joke, Setsuna-san, don't take it to heart."

"_She's gone, Haru. And the fact that you're able to joke around pretty much means you're fine so…"_

"Asshole, I'll get you when I see you later," threatened Haruka jokingly.

"_So that means you're coming then? You have no idea how much that means to me, buddy,"_ said Seiya gratefully.

"There's one little problem though, my car's under maintenance servicing today, so just tell me where the rehearsal's gonna take place and I'll be there in a jiffy. It's about to start, isn't it?" said the blond teen as he glanced at the digital clock which sat on the bedside table.

"_About that… my current location's pretty nearby your place. Want me to pick you up instead? And it saves you the trouble of taking public transport anyway."_

"Sure, I'll see you in five then. I'm all dressed and ready."

"_Got it, see you soon."_

_Click._

As soon as the dark haired man hung up, he fell back onto the bed with his arms spread out wide and closed his teal eyes. It was the right decision to make, wasn't it? After all, it just wasn't fair to both Michiru and him that they had to go through a marriage against their will. Even if it was only for a short span of time, he had pretty much enjoyed the times he spent with the violinist, even though all they did were to have a few meals together and chatted for a few times.

The buzzing of the doorbell snapped the young blond out of his thoughts and he soon made his way to the door.

"Coming!"

The sight that greeted him was definitely not what he had expected.

xxxxx

"Why the hell is he living in this kind of place with this kind of traffic? The streets are practically like a maze!" said the dark haired man exasperatedly as he honked at the cars ahead of him.

"I told you I should've been the one to drive, Seiya-kun," began Setsuna, who was sitting in the passenger's seat and holding onto a schedule planner while she scribbled some words which were only legible to her. "Your navigation skills are that of a five year old child who gets lost in minimarts."

"Ouch, you could've been a little less blatant with your comments Setsuna-san…" said Seiya as he looked at the tall woman with a small tired smile upon his handsome features.

"Well, the truth usually hurts," quipped the tanned woman as she shrugged. There was a moment of silence between them save the sound of the pen scribbling against the paper, and what broke the silence was the question of, "want me to take over?"

"Nah, I can manage," smiled the dark haired man once again.

xxxxx

"Haruka-kun."

"Michiru…san?"

Saying that the blond teen was a little surprised was an understatement, and noticing the look on the young racer's face, she took her action swiftly.

"Konnichiwa, I must apologize for coming without prior notice," said the aqua haired girl as she gave a slight bow in apology.

It was that moment that the blond racer saw his chance to recover from the shock. After all, having his arranged marriage fiancée whom he decided not to see again dropping by his place wasn't something that happened every day.

"Ah, it's okay. I'm used to unannounced visits all the time," the tall blond lied awkwardly.

They stood in the doorway and looked at each other for a few seconds before the aqua haired girl commented, "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

The words did not register in the Tenou heir's mind until a few seconds later.

"Of course, but can you spare me a few seconds?" said Haruka awkwardly again as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment.

With a confused look upon the beautiful violinist's face, she acceded to her fiancé's request by nodding and the door to the apartment was shut in her face immediately. What ensued were sounds of crashes and clangs and footsteps running around the wooden tiles as well as a few cusses before the door finally opened again, revealing a slightly panting and disheveled blond boy standing in the doorway.

"I'm sorry for all that. Please come in and take a seat," said the blond teen as he ushered the small girl into his apartment.

"Sorry for intruding," said the ocean eyed violinist as she set her foot into the apartment, admiring the coziness of the place even though it was not as big as her room. "You have a very nice place, Haruka-kun."

"Thanks, I don't get that a lot from people," the blond teen smiled genuinely and continued, "You can take a seat on the couch, it's more comfortable there. Would you like a drink?"

"No, I'm fine, thank you for asking," answered the girl quickly.

It was weird having her in the apartment. Possible reasons of her sudden visit ran amok in his mind, and he prayed that it wouldn't be about the wedding or the concert but as far as his luck was concerned, things usually didn't turn out the way he wanted them to be. The worst thing was that he had already planned on never seeing the beautiful violinist ever again. To ensure the annulment of the marriage, he was ready to make sacrifices. Alas, fate had to play a trick on him by sending her to his door.

With a graceful movement, the Kaiou girl folded her hands neatly upon her lap as she settled herself on the couch.

"So… what brings you here, Michiru-san?" asked Haruka as he sat himself on the loveseat opposite his beautiful fiancée with a glass coffee table in between them.

The violinist parted her lips to speak; only to be interrupted by the ringtone of…

_I'm a Barbie girl,_

_In the Barbie world_

_Life in plastic, it's fantastic!_

_You can brush my hair, undress me everywhere…_

The owner of the ringing phone in question reddened visibly and swore under his breath while the ocean eyed girl raised her eyebrow in a quirky manner and attempted to stifle her giggles regarding the ringtone.

'Damn that Hiro, I'll get him for this when I see him next time.'

"I'm sorry, please excuse me for a moment," said the blond racer as he rushed to his bedroom in the matter of seconds. The young blond dived for his phone and ringing was silenced as soon as the cover of the phone flipped open.

"Tenou here, who's this calling?"

"_Oh thank god you finally picked up the phone! Buddy, you gotta come save me now! I'm in front of this 'Okama Diner' place and I can assure you that it's not a pretty sight here,"_ the voice of the dark haired man said as he laughed nervously.

"Why the heck are you-" Haruka stopped in the middle of his sentence and slapped a hand to his forehead. He knew Seiya was a navigational idiot, but he never expected the man to drive all the way from his apartment to that horrifying diner and in the first place, why wasn't Setsuna the one taking the wheels? He shuddered at the thought of Setsuna sitting in the passenger's seat with her eyebrows twitching dangerously while she restrained the urge to strangle the life out of the singer before her.

"Why don't you just hand the wheel over to Setsuna-san and let her take care of everything?"

"_About that…"_ the handsome singer laughed nervously over the phone and continued, _"she seems to be trembling with fear and talking to her doesn't seem to work."_

'She's trembling in anger, you idiot!' the words screamed in the blond haired teen's mind.

The blond haired boy rolled his eyes at the last comment and groaned at the thought of having to travel all the way there on a public transport. It was the worst situation ever. Kaiou Michiru dropped him a surprise visit, his best friend wandered into some shady area with that crappy navigational skills of his and pissed the one who could've saved him from the situation off, and to pacify that manager who could save his ass would take ages. He didn't have a choice after all.

"Fine, stay where you are, I'm on my way."

"_Thank you so much Haru! You're a lifesaver! Thank you than-"_

_Click._

He massaged the bridge of his nose and sighed. Whatever the violinist had to say, it had to wait.

Opening the door to his bedroom, he made his way to the violinist swiftly and said, "I'm sorry Michiru-san, could we talk another time? I have something really important to attend to right now."

Ocean colored eyes met teal colored ones in understanding, and she smiled.

"Yes of course, there will be no need to see me out. We shall talk again," finished Michiru as she gave a small bow before vacating the apartment of her presence.

He sighed. That meant he had no choice but to talk to her again on another day however reluctant he would be.

xxxxx

"Now where the hell is that place?!" asked Haruka as he scanned the area for Seiya's dark brown ride.

A honk behind him quickly solved his problem of looking for the car that had mistakenly wandered into the wrong area of the city. The blond boy picked up his pace and rushed to the door of the vehicle on the driver's side.

"Finally found you!" said the blond teen as he reached the door expecting his best friend to open it and step out of the car to let him into the driver's seat. The window winded down and to his surprise, it was no longer the dark haired singer who had been driving but his garnet eyed manager who was obviously in a very foul mood. "Eh? Setsuna-san? Why are you-"

"Shut up and get in," ordered the garnet eyed woman as she sent a glare at the blond racer. Haruka gulped visibly and did as he was told. As he opened the door to the backseat, he could see the dark haired singer hugging his knees to his chest and burying his head in his knees. It was probably not the best time to talk to him it seemed. Without prior notice, the violet eyed man lunged at his best friend, and sobbed dramatically onto the blond racer's shoulders.

"Haru! Setsuna-san bullied me!"

The garnet eyed woman twitched dangerously in the driver's seat and the car swerved off its lane for a moment, causing a few honks to sound from the surrounding cars.

"Oh my GOD! Setsuna-san, keep your hands on the steering wheel please!" the blond haired boy pleaded, and prayed to god sincerely, wishing that it wouldn't be his last ride on a car. After all, what would others say if they found a professional racer, a champion in the making no less, in a car accident?

"Kou," he began, but stopped as he felt a chill down his spine, courtesy of the tanned woman who was driving in the front seat. Defeated, he patted the sobbing singer on the shoulder and said, "I'm sorry, I can't help you this time."

xxxxx

"We're still alive…" said Haruka as he alighted from the brown colored vehicle. It was a miracle they survived under the crazy driving of Seiya's manager. With no regards for the traffic was one thing, getting away from the traffic police who was after them the entire time was another.

The blond racer secretly swore to himself never to ride in Seiya's car again if that crazy manager of his was ever gonna drive again. He glanced at the dark haired man who seemed to have recovered from 'Setsuna-san's bullying' as he claimed.

"Haru, we're gonna leave you behind if you're gonna be all dazed! Come on, let's go," said the violet eyed man as he handed the music stand to the blond teen, "Here, you can carry this."

'Whatever happened to all that sobbing?!'

The blond racer sighed and shook his head, "Should've known."

xxxxx

"So which hall are we supposed to be at?" asked Haruka as he surveyed the posters of numerous famous musicians and theatre groups along the corridors while they walked.

"We're here!" said the dark haired guitarist as he set his instrument leaning by the stage. Noticing a certain girl in the audience seats, he waved enthusiastically at her and made his way towards her quickly with a bright smile upon his handsome face.

"Michiru-san, we're terribly sorry for being late," the dark haired musician apologized as he stood before the aqua haired violinist.

Upon hearing the name, the blond pianist froze in his tracks, causing the garnet eyed manager who was carrying a stack of documents to lose her balance and crash into him as she dropped the stack of papers while the music stand that he was previously holding onto fell to the ground with a resounding 'clang'.

"Haruka-kun?"

Once again, their eyes met, and the blond boy emitted an awkward laughter which soon filled the empty hall.

The Tenou heir sighed as soon as the eye contact broke.

As fate would have it, never seeing Kaiou Michiru again after whatever she wanted to talk about was not possible after all.

_End of Chapter_

Akira: That spells the end of the chapter. I'm sorry it took so long. I'm kinda like hopping stories these days. Can never concentrate on one unless I have an inspiration or something of the likes going on in my head. Keep your eyes peeled; there may be a one-shot coming soon. It's almost completed heh.


	6. Let's start over!

Akira: Well hello people, I'm back. Kinda. To the anonymous reviewers, I am unfortunately unable to answer your questions yet.

_Chapter 6: Let's start over!_

"Kou, buddy, can you _please_ tell me what Kaiou Michiru's doing here?" asked Haruka in a hushed tone. The handsome blond had been waiting for an opportunity to talk to the dark haired singer ever since that awkward moment with the Kaiou heir. Now that she was talking to her manager, the tall blond saw his chance and proceeded to grab his best friend with a headlock and pulled him into the corner.

"Oh, didn't I tell you? I'm doing a joint concert with your fiancée," the dark haired man explained calmly and ended his sentence with a mischievous wink.

"No you didn't," the blond haired boy scowled at his best friend and looked at the ocean eyed girl who was conversing with her manager. The aqua haired violinist sensed attention on her and turned to look at her handsome fiancé, giving him a friendly wave.

The blond racer waved back meekly and smiled before sighing incredulously.

"Wait a minute…" sharp teal eyes stared at the dark haired man and narrowed slowly, "please tell me you didn't… Did my old man put you up to this?"

"Well, you can always count on me to leave out all the important details," said the dark haired guitarist happily as he grinned proudly at his best friend and puffed his chest. As soon as the sentence was finished the musician received a bump on the head.

"That's not something to be proud of," the racer chided and the dark haired man let out a relaxed laughter after seeing the look on his friend's face. The laughter died down in seconds and he spoke, this time with more zeal, "Shouldn't we start rehearsing?"

The teal eyed boy smiled and replied, "Yeah, let's start."

Something deep within him stirred.

'I'm so going to kill that old man the next time I see him.'

xxxxx

"Stop, stop!" said the blond racer as he rose from the bench. "This part here sounds a little funny." He played the part over again, proving his point to the other two.

"It _does_ sound a little weird I suppose," answered the guitarist as he listened to the piece. "Have you got any suggestions then?"

"I was actually planning to drop an octave here and then change it to a crescendo like this," he tried it again, fingers running smoothly along the keys and earning nods from the violinist and guitarist.

The dark haired singer thought for a moment before replying, "That could work, but the original meaning will be changed because of that."

"Perhaps I should make a little change to my arrangement?" said Michiru as she placed the bow on the strings and started to play.

"Wait, could you do it again, Michiru-san?" the blond haired pianist closed his eyes and listened intently.

'Hmm… maybe I can just try this…'

It didn't take long for them to start venturing out from that little verse and soon, the guitarist who was just standing in the front began strumming the chords that formed in his head.

xxxxx

"Good work, everyone," the three chorused as they moved away from the stage and sat in the audience seats.

"That was one of the best we've done as of yet. I'm really looking forward to the concert," said the black haired singer as he took a gulp from the bottle that was provided.

On the other hand, the pianist of the group seemed to be having a little difficulty in relaxing around the violinist even after all that practice they had gone through for the past few hours. Playing together as a group wasn't that difficult since there were hardly any pauses in between and they didn't really have the chance to chat in those short periods of pauses as well. Playing definitely did get things off his mind for that period of time but it always didn't seem long before his mind began drifting back to the scenes back at his apartment.

He shook his head a little. There was hardly any time to start thinking about how to deal with the problems at hand. He needed to escape from it all.

"By the way, are you hungry?" the blond racer interrupted absentmindedly. Thinking too hard tended to make him feel hungry.

"Haru, we're in the middle of some important discussion here. But yeah, I'm rather hungry. What about you Michiru-san?"

"Ah… I'm not particularly…"

"We'll have something light then," the blond racer replied promptly.

"There's pretty nice restaurant not far from here. It's just a five minutes drive away, any objections?" asked Seiya as he raised one of his brows.

"Yes I have one," answered Haruka quickly as he raised his hand up in the air, as if he was answering a question in the classroom.

"Hai, Tenou-kun, what is the answer to the question?" asked Seiya as he mimicked the tone of their teacher when they were still in high school, pointing the pen he had been holding in his hand at the Tenou heir.

"Sensei, I would like to object to having you as the driver _and_ the navigator. Your sense of direction is worse than a woman's. No offense meant by the way, Michiru-san," replied the handsome blond proudly with a smirk evident on his features.

"None taken," replied the violinist quickly with an amused smile on her face.

The dark haired man scowled at his best friend for the smartass comment and put the blond head into a headlock as payback back for the one he received during the day, resulting in a mock brawl between the two of them. The aqua haired violinist who had been suppressing the urge to giggle finally could not hold it in any long and let out a snort which soon escalated into a refined laughter which caused both men to stop in their childish actions and look at each other in the eye before joining in the laughter as well.

The laughter lasted for a good minute before fading away with two men clutching to their stomachs for laughing too hard.

"I'm sorry you had to see that, Michiru-san," Haruka apologized, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"It's okay, I don't mind. Are the two of you always like this?" inquired the aqua haired girl with interest.

"Well…" the dark haired man began sheepishly and rubbed his neck before continuing, "It's a _lot_ crazier when Shiratani's around."

"Shall we go then?" asked Haruka as he waited for his companions to react. Both nodded, and started to make their way towards the exit of the concert hall.

"_I'm_ driving, by the way," quipped the blond as they entered the lift.

"Cheh, fine."

xxxxx

"And then this fat woman in a bikini popped out from the birthday cake and lunged at the poor guy!" the blond boy said animatedly, with Seiya and Michiru bursting into laughter.

The dark haired singer wiped a tear from his eye as the laughter died down and chuckled, "Those were the good old days. Looking back now, I can't believe how incredibly stupid and mischievous we all were."

The blond disagreed, "Wrong, you were the only stupid one. Hiro and I were never caught!"

"That's unfair man; you were just way too fast for the teachers to catch you!" Seiya protested.

"Doesn't that mean that you're too slow then?" Haruka taunted with a smirk tugging at his lips.

"No, it only means that the teachers were too fast for me to outrun," the singer argued.

"Keep talking, and maybe one day someone will believe you, smartass," the blond racer rolled his eyes while he gestured for the violet eyed man to go on. It always annoyed Seiya to no end when Haruka did that. The violinist watched the entire banter with interest, noting to herself that the young Tenou heir was definitely much relaxed around his friends than when he was with her. Somehow, she realized that she actually liked seeing this side of the pianist. He seemed happier and more like his usual self, instead of the façade he always showed her when they were alone.

With that, the conversation came to a conclusion and the dark haired man proceeded to take a short glance at his watch.

"Whoa, look at the time," the tall man said, pointing at the clock located right behind Michiru. The pianist turned his head for a brief moment, his teal eyes focusing on the time stated on the clock.

"Yeah, it's getting late," he agreed.

"I've got an important appointment in the morning, and Setsuna-san's coming to pick me up soon. Haru, do you mind seeing Michiru-san home? You can borrow my ride for the night. Setsuna-san's coming in another."

The blond racer hesitated to take his best friend up on his offer. After all, seeing the violinist home would mean spending time alone with her; for him it was a situation which he would've liked to avoid no matter what.

However...

"Yeah, sure thing," replied the racer promptly. As soon as he realized what his reply was, his inner self started grabbing his head and tugged wildly at his blond hair, tearing a handful of blond hair away from his head. 'Why the hell did I agree to that?! I can so totally see my escape route dissipate into nothingness.'

"Is it alright with you, Michiru-san?" the dark haired singer asked, awaiting her confirmation.

The Kaiou heir nodded and smiled politely at Seiya, "Yes of course." She turned to her handsome fiancé and smiled again, "Thank you, and sorry for the trouble."

"Oh don't worry about it, it's hardly any trouble," Haruka faked a smile with his inner self once again screaming at him, calling him a liar.

'You are in so much trouble, Tenou.'

A ringtone soon interrupted their conversation and soon, Seiya was out of their sight, happily making his way towards the exit of the café and bidding his goodbyes to the duo. The aqua haired girl gave a light wave at the singer's retreating back and asked, "shouldn't we get going, Haruka-kun?"

The stiff frame of the blond racer was rooted deeply in the ground as he replied nervously, "Yeah, we should. Let's go."

xxxxx

The ride to the Kaiou mansion was awkwardly quiet, with neither one knowing what to say. The silence was finally broken when Michiru requested for the handsome blond racer to stop by the starlit beach near her mansion.

The violinist removed her heels and started walking barefooted along the shores, feeling the tingling sensation of the cold seawater reaching to her ankles. The blond teen followed suit and removed his shoes as well.

"I always come here to relax," said the violinist.

"I can see why. It's a really nice place," replied the Tenou heir with a smile on his face as he felt the cooling sea breeze tousle his short, messy blond hair.

The Kaiou girl halted abruptly in her tracks and turned to face the blond haired boy, her gaze serious.

The young Tenou braced himself for what was to come.

'And here it comes.'

"Tenou-kun, we _need_ to talk."

The emphasis on the word 'need' was not missed by Haruka, as was the use of his last name instead of his given. Haruka could only nod and sigh inwardly, as dark green eyes met serious ocean blue ones. Who was he trying to kid anyway? As fate would have it, avoiding her proved to be impossible what with his best friend and old man setting them up. Besides, it only made matters worse now that they would be seeing each other more often.

'Well, it _did_ seem like a viable option back then.'

The aqua haired girl took a deep breath before confronting the young Tenou heir which stood barefooted in the sand.

"Why?"

The question came off more forcefully than she thought it'd be.

The blond lowered his dark green gaze towards the ground, watching the waves move towards his feet, and then recede back into the sea again. It took a few seconds for him to respond to her question.

"I believed that it would be the best solution if we never see each other again, Kaiou-san."

Finishing it off with no strings attached. Well, he had to stop somewhere before he plunged deeper into the hellhole which was visible right ahead.

"How so? I must apologize for the fact that I do not see the point of it all, Haruka-kun," her tone less forceful than it was in the first place. And she was back on the first name basis again, Haruka noticed. The small girl sighed, "Running away does not solve problems, Haruka-kun."

He knew it wouldn't work, those words needn't be said. However at that point in time, it simply did not register in his mind. All he wanted, was to escape from the wretched reality of him getting married to a woman that would never fall for him, and risk his true self being revealed because of the marriage, even though the revelation may heighten the chances of the aqua haired girl falling for him. It would however, ruin everything that he had; friends, career, every _damned_ thing, including his life.

In the first place, what would the Kaiou's do if they knew? It was too big of a gamble. That damned old man surely knew what he was getting himself into, yet it didn't stop him from going through with the engagement proposal. One thing Haruka knew for sure was he definitely did not understand what the old man was trying to pull.

"I know it very well. Perhaps even more so than you do, Michiru-san…" He trailed off and grimaced at his choice of words, hoping that the violinist didn't catch the hidden meaning in his words.

"If that's the case, can we do this over?"

The Kaiou girl sounded hopeful. Why was she trying to do everything she could to keep him around even though she had completely no intention to marry the blond racer? She knew it wouldn't be easy for the both of them, especially him. Was it a bad choice to talk to him then? It was no use questioning herself, time would prove everything.

The blond racer averted his dark green eyes from the water beneath him and hesitantly placed his teal gaze upon her aquamarine orbs. In those eyes, he could sense her resolve. It was strong and unyielding. How could he turn her request down when she looked like that? The outcome was already decided the moment she popped the question.

The Kaiou heir felt the blond teen's gaze harden as he spoke firmly, "Yeah, let's do it over."

The young pianist took a step back and bowed respectfully at the aqua haired girl, "Nice to meet you, my name is Tenou Haruka. I'm nineteen this year and I like to race. You may address me by my given name, Haruka or Haru for short."

Michiru let out a breath that she was unconsciously holding and broke into a smile as she responded to his introduction with her own, "Pleased to meet you too Haruka-kun. My name is Kaiou Michiru. I'm also nineteen this year. My hobbies are swimming, painting, and playing the violin. You may also address me by my given name, Michiru. I would like for us to be friends."

A sense of relief washed over Haruka as they finished their introduction. A mischievous grin spread soon across his handsome features as he distanced himself from the violinist, bending down to dip his hands in the cooling seawater and splashed the water at the violinist's ankles, earning a high pitched yelp from the small girl.

Surprised as Michiru was, she quickly retaliated by repeating his actions and focused her attention on getting the Tenou boy soaked to the core. Laughter soon emitted from both ends as they continued splashing water at the other. It didn't take long before Haruka collapsed to the ground and surrendered to the violinist.

"Time out! You're way too good at this, Michiru-san," the blond racer laughed breathlessly as he felt Michiru plop onto the sandy beach next to him.

"It's not fair that you caught me off guard either, Haruka-kun," replied the violinist jokingly. "It's been a long time since I've had fun like this, thank you."

Feeling glad that things worked out fine in the end, the handsome racer turned to face Michiru, the grin on his face widened.

"I'm really glad we talked things over, Michiru-san. Thank you for confronting me, or I would still be running away from the problem," admitted Haruka bashfully as he rubbed the back of his neck habitually. The young racer then tilted his head upwards, his teal gaze watching the star filled night sky.

The young Kaiou smiled genuinely. The handsome racer was right. It definitely did feel better after they did the talking. At least, the uncertainty in the both of them was quelled for the moment. It was a mutual understanding between the two that the uncertainty would soon resurface as long as the marriage issues were not solved. It was not a problem that could be solved by brooding over it. There were also many factors to consider, the most important being their parents.

"Shall we go then? It's getting late. We don't want your parents to worry," Haruka removed his gaze from the sky and made a move to stand and extend his hand towards the small violinist.

Michiru took his hand and felt herself being pulled to her feet without much effort from the Tenou boy.

"Oh don't worry about them; they're out of the country for the rest of the week."

xxxxx

Another awkward farewell awaited them as the young musician and racer stood silently at the doorstep of the Kaiou mansion. A handshake again would be weird, Haruka decided. A kiss was definitely out of the question, so how should he go about it? While the young Tenou was busy mulling about the insignificant, the feeling of something soft brushing against his cheek shook him back to reality. The Kaiou girl almost laughed as the word 'shock' was written all over the handsome blonde's face. It was probably a once in a lifetime thing to see Tenou Haruka gaping like a fish on dry land.

"Thanks for seeing me home again, I had a great time. See you at the rehearsal on Tuesday Haruka-kun. Oh yes and, let's hang out again sometime. "

The violinist smiled and shut the door gently as she entered her home without giving the young pianist a chance to reply.

The poor boy sighed to himself.

"Well what do you know… this girl is not the devil incarnate; she's the devil herself."

xxxxx

Akira: I'm sorry it took so long! This was written a long time ago, I never updated because I had no idea on how I should end the chapter. Well, it's up to you to decided whether you're going to follow this through or you know, just drop this story since I take so long to do a bloody update. Review if you like, it motivates, really.


	7. Uncertainty

Akira: Not really back for long, but I feel really bad about leaving unfinished fics around like that. AND, saying that it's been a long time is a great understatement I'd say. Well, I'm _trying_ my best to have a fulfilling school life, translate some manga, and hope that my exam results won't blow up in my face with 'F's. Guess that's enough babbling, and let's get things going.

**Note: There is some sort of a time skip thingy going on in this chapter. Please pay attention to it~ It may not seem relevant now, but it will be in the future.**

_Chapter 7: Uncertainty_

"Michiru-san, I'm off to grab a bite, is there anything that you want?"

"No I'm fine, thank you."

"Hey, this isn't fair, what happened to your best friend who's _this close_ to dying here?" Seiya whined, putting a tiny space in between his fingers to place emphasis on his point.

"From what I see, you're doing just fine," the young Tenou rolled his eyes at the guitarist and disappeared from the studio without another word.

As soon as the racer was away, the young man quickly sensed the opportunity to question the aqua haired violinist.

"So how do you find him, Michiru-san?"

"I'm not sure if I get what you mean, Seiya-kun," smiled the violinist politely as she proceeded to apply a little rosin to her bow.

The singer grinned at the sight of her smile and asked slyly, "What I'm trying to say is, how do you find Tenou Haruka as a friend and is there a chance of you developing into something more than just friends?"

"I think he is a very good friend who is willing to help his friends out no matter the situation, as for your second question, yes, I'm sure we will be more than just friends."

The guitarist beamed at her last comment, only to be let down by her next.

"Good friends, perhaps."

"Aw Michiru-san, that's hardly fair play."

Her lips slowly curved into a smile as she applauded herself for cleverly avoiding the question. The answer to that second question was something that she herself hadn't even thought of. She was fairly sure that the racer was attracted to her, but kept a safe distance away from her out of respect for her. She _did_ after all, tell the blond boy that she wasn't interested in men. Yet there was this strange connection she felt between them. There was just something about the racer that she couldn't put her finger on that kept her intrigued whenever she was with him.

"What's hardly fair play?"

The door to the studio opened and the racer let himself in promptly, placing himself onto the piano bench, eying the other occupants of the room suspiciously.

Seiya smirked evilly and replied before Michiru could say anything.

"That's for us to know, and for you to find out."

"Right, whatever," Haruka rolled his eyes for the second time of the day as they continued with the practice.

* * *

The Tenou heir smiled with his eyes closed as he faced the sea with his arms spread out wide and took a long, deep breath; feeling cooling breeze of the sea run through his messy blond locks and his feet slowly sinking into the sand underneath.

"This feels awesome, Michiru-san, especially after being cooped up in that tiny little studio for hours. I haven't felt so relaxed for a while now."

A smile formed on the violinist's lips as she repeated the racer's actions from an arm's length away beside the racer.

"I second that, Haruka-kun. This feels really good after a long practice. It's so cooling and relaxing here."

The racer let out the long breath he took in and turned his head towards his soon to be ex fiancée before inquiring, "So what was it that Kou and you were talking about while I was gone?"

"Nothing, actually. It was just a casual chat," the violinist smiled.

The young Tenou frowned; something tells him that whatever they were talking about concerned him. Definitely. However, to push the violinist into telling him whatever had gone on back there while he was gone was not something he would want to do.

"So, how did it go with your parents? Have you…" He paused, not sure whether he should continue with the line of conversation or not, but pushed on anyway. "… Talked to them?" He looked up. The stars in the sky shone and twinkled, the moonlit beach filled with nothing but silence and the sound of the waves hitting the shore periodically. Perhaps that wasn't a good time to be talking about the engagement after all, even if it bothered the both of them. Perhaps, it was the time to just enjoy the scenery, the breeze, and each others' company.

The violinist slowly sat herself upon the sandy grounds and hugged her knees close to her chest.

"No… I'm afraid not." She replied quietly, her ocean blue orbs staring into the dark, blue sea, unfathomable. "I…" she hesitated for a brief moment, and thought hard about what to say to the blond teen standing beside her.

"I just haven't got the chance to talk to them properly yet."

"I see…"

"Well, you'll get your chance soon."

"I hope so."

"I tried talking to my father. It doesn't seem like he's going to change his mind any time soon. I'll talk him around for sure, don't worry about it."

"Okay."

Then, there was that awkward silence which plagued them many nights before. The young heirs simply sat there for the next hour, wondering what was to come after everything.

Will they still talk the way they did in the past few weeks?

Will they even see each other again?

Those thoughts haunted the two, prompting both of them to wonder if they were making the right choice after all. It was all so contradictory. They were confused, their senses were blinded and worse of all, they became completely oblivious to what was really going on.

And thus, the rest of the night was spent in silence.

* * *

"Hime-chan, how did the date with Haruka-kun go?" her mother beamed, hope shone evidently in her eyes as Michiru gingerly shut the door behind her. She sighed. It wasn't as if she didn't enjoy the young blonde's company, but having her mother bug her about it every time she came home in his car was just a little too… excessive.

"It was not a date, Okaa-san. It was a concert rehearsal, together with Seiya-kun no less."

"Well, there is always a chance for something to develop, no? Hime-chan, give him a chance. I can tell that he likes you." Her mother assured, holding Michiru's hands in her slightly wrinkled ones.

The aqua haired teen retracted her hands.

"Okaa-san, we've been through this many times. There is nothing between us. If there's ever a chance for anything to develop, it's friendship. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less."

Friendship?

Was what she had for the Tenou heir merely friendship?

She wasn't even sure of how she felt, or what she really wanted anymore.

_Whatever_.

She could care less. She was getting tired of it all. The conversation was going nowhere, she knew. Any more talking would leave a sour aftertaste. That was for sure. The older Kaiou woman nodded, apparently having the same thoughts, and bade her daughter good night with a kiss upon the violinist's forehead.

"Good night, Hime-chan. I really do wish that you'd think it over though. Your father and I, we…"

"Good night, Okaa-san."

With that, she ascended the stairs and entered her room.

Yukiko sighed at the bottom of the stairs. She loved her daughter. She wished for her to be happy. She wished for her to be taken care of, should her husband and her leave the world one day. The Tenous would surely be able to do so.

* * *

The young violinist walked to her bed and fell face down onto the pillows upon reaching it. She gripped the pillow tight. The concert was just up ahead. There shouldn't be any room for distractions, none at all.

* * *

"Kou! How do I look?"

"Don't worry bud, you look great. Thirty minutes to show time, buddy. Suck it up!" The guitarist clapped his best friend on the back. "I gotta go for my make-up session. See you later!"

The blond racer stared at his reflection in the mirror. His wild blond hair was gelled and combed neatly. The ocean colored bow tie fit perfectly under the wing-tip collar. The tailcoat was a perfect fit too. He looked magnificent. Everyone who was present could attest to that.

He swallowed.

It had been a long time since he last performed onstage. When was the last time he did?

High school?

Junior High?

He couldn't recall at all.

'Hope I don't screw their concert up.' He prayed silently.

Too engrossed in his thoughts, he didn't even notice the aqua haired girl approach until he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders.

"Oh, Michiru-san! How long have you been here?" He turned in his seat. He hoped he didn't sound nervous to his soon-to-be ex-fiancée. The two had grown close in the past couple of months. The line of friendship had never been breached though, save for occasional flirting.

"Oh, a couple of minutes give or take. Is the great racer Tenou Haruka feeling nervous?" The aqua haired beauty teased, her luscious pink lips curving into a mischievous smile. It was something she learned from being around the men for almost three months. She bent downwards, her hands never leaving his shoulders, and she stared at their reflection through the mirror. His cummerbund matched the color of her eyes, as did his bow tie. And her gown? It was teal green. They were picture perfect, one might say.

He felt a little squeeze on his tensed shoulders.

"Relax, Haruka-kun." She whispered in his ears before straightening up.

He swallowed again.

'Think nothing of it. It's just a gesture to help me relax.'

Self persuasion didn't seem to work somehow. He could feel the blood pumping in his ears. Nothing she seemed to be saying to him registered. The defenses of Tenou Haruka's systems came crumbling down within seconds. Logic didn't matter anymore. In one swift motion, he grabbed her hands with his sweaty ones, prompting for her to stop the massage. His mind was screaming for control of his body, yet his body didn't obey.

He looked into the mirror. Hard. His intense gaze sent shivers down the violinist's spine. Teal green met ocean blue. Nothing was said, but everything was understood. Desire was evident in the racer's eyes, the violinist could tell.

They had to stop now. His mind screamed.

Before he falls deeper.

Before things get more complicated than they already were.

* * *

"_Please, hang on, Kaede! What will the kids and I do without you?" The man held on to the freezing hands of his wife, on the verge of tears. _

"_It's okay, Toshi, don't cry. You're scaring them. Look, they're crying already." The woman smiled, her breath weakening by the second. Said babies bawled loudly, as if they knew what was going on in that ward. The pain in the man's eyes said everything. They told his wife how much he loved her. How much he wanted her to stay with him. As much as he knew how it wasn't possible, he still held on to the hope desperately. He brought her freezing hands to his lips and kissed them. Shutting his eyes tight, he let the tears fall freely down his eyes. That night, he prayed hard. _

* * *

"Hey bud, we're ready to roll in five!" The dark haired man chirped happily as he entered the room. And within a fraction of the second, his smile curved into a sly grin.

The blond pianist retracted his hands quickly, as did the violinist.

"Uh, right, we're coming." Haruka managed to cough out.

"I have to pick my violin up from my dressing room. See you later."

The racer nodded meekly. His hands were still sweaty, he noticed.

Immediately after the violinist was out of earshot, the dark haired guitarist wasted no time in head locking his best friend.

"Spill the beans, what _was_ going on back there?"

"Nothing!"

"Oh really? I know for sure that I saw _something_."

"Cut the bull, you saw nothing. We didn't even start!"

"Hoho… So there _was_ something you were about to start, eh?" His grin grew wider.

"I swear there was nothing, dude."

"Alright, alright. I believe you. There was nothing. I get it." The tall man rolled his eyes and started walking off.

"Oh, but I _know_ that horny look when I see it!" He laughed loudly and began to ran, lest his best friend put him into a head lock this time.

"You are _so_ going to get it when this is over, Kou!"

_End of Chapter_

Akira: This chapter is considerably shorter than the rest. Please forgive me, it's been long after all. I'm sorry for all the delay.


	8. Realization

Akira: Hey fellers, it's me. Again. I'm not back for good I think. Kinda busy with school life right now. Midterms are coming, and I'm writing. Just great. Anyway, 'nuff said, and on with the story. Sorry it took so long. Oh and a word of warning. This isn't being proofread. So there are probably lots of tenses and grammar mistakes here and there. If you spot them, please pretend that you didn't see them lol.

_Chapter 8: Realization_

"To the splendid performance!"

"To the splendid performance!" The others echoed.

"Kanpai!"

Voices of happiness filled the room as the staff drank to their hearts content to a job well done for the night. The after-party was set to take place in a restaurant located in Ginza, where they would be headed to next after the clean up.

_Now this is awkward… Argh, I _really_ shouldn't have done that. I just dug my own grave._

The blond racer swallowed the lump that had been forming in his throat as he neared the violinist. The violinist's raven haired manager had just left after a couple of words with her, probably to get herself a drink or to take care of whatever that had been left untaken care of.

"Michiru-san?"

The young Tenou raked a hair through his hair nervously, contemplating how he should start the conversation. Now that the excitement of the performance had died down, whatever happened before the concert was starting to come back to him. He could feel that the lump in his throat wasn't clearing, no matter how much he tried to swallow it down.

"Haruka-kun? Is something wrong?"

The aqua haired violinist asked, worry apparent in her deep ocean blues.

_'Seems like it didn't affect her in any way. Perhaps I should just drop it? Argh, to hell with it.'_

"About what happened, I'm-

"Hime-chan!"

The violinist whipped her head around almost immediately at the nickname and flushed a little. She smiled apologetically and made her way to her mother with the blond racer trailing after her.

"That was fabulous, hime-chan," said Yukiko as she approached Michiru for a hug.

"Thank you for coming, Okaa-san. Is Otou-san here tonight?" The aqua haired girl smiled gratefully at her mother, returning her hug in the process.

"Oh no, he had some business to take care of tonight. I'm here in his stead," The older Kaiou smiled at her daughter and turned to the blond racer, giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"You did wonderful out there, Haruka-kun."

"Thank you, Kaiou-san. I'm glad you could make it," the Tenou heir bowed in reply.

"Have you seen my father by the way?" Haruka asked casually as teal eyes scanned the area near the door for a graying blond head.

"Oh yes, I met him before I came in. He must have gone to the washroom."

The blond teen nodded and replied with an easy smile upon his handsome features, "I see. Would you like a drink, Kaiou-san? But seeing as how the main character of the event is still under aged, we've got no alcoholic drinks."

The older Kaiou laughed lightly, "Oh no, thank you. I have to take my leave soon. Where is the other star of the night?"

The young racer soon beckoned for his best friend. The tall man who caught the signal quickly detached himself from the group he was mingling with and made his way over, half-hopping, and half-skipping lest he ran into someone or something in the currently crowded room.

"Hey buddy, what's up?" said the dark haired man as he reached the trio with a grin plastered on his face, his drink still in his hand.

"Kou, meet Kaiou-san, Michiru-san's mother," said the racer as he gestured to the brown haired woman standing beside Michiru. The guitarist straightened his back immediately and bowed. "Nice to meet you, Kaiou-san. Thank you for taking the time to come tonight. I'm Seiya Kou."

"It's a pleasure. And please, there is no need for formalities, Seiya-san," the brown haired woman said in a friendly manner. "I must apologize for interrupting your conversation with your friends. I only wished to congratulate you for the success of this concert, and thank you for doing this with my daughter."

"Oh don't mention it, Kaiou-san. If anything, I was looking for a chance to get away. So you were actually doing me a favor back there."

The group shared a quick laugh which died down as soon as it came. The brown haired woman was the first to speak again when she spotted a man sporting graying blond hair standing by the door.

"Oh! There he is, Haruka-kun. Your father's here."

She waved lightly to the tall blond man to catch his attention. The Tenou head promptly strode over, dodging the other occupants of the room in the process. The dark haired man grinned as the older Tenou approached and shared a quick hug amongst themselves.

"Good to see you again, Toshi oji-san. It's been so long. How have you been?"

The usually stoic man broke out into a smile as he pat his son's best friend on the back as they hugged.

"I've been great, Kou. You three sounded great from the get go. It's no wonder your record sales are doing so well. You look beautiful by the way, Michiru-chan."

The violinist smiled and bowed politely, "Thank you, Tenou-san. I'm glad you enjoyed the performance."

"Where will you be headed after this? I heard that there will be an after party somewhere…" the blond man stroked his chin thoughtfully as he trailed off.

"We're going to Ootori Sushi at Ginza. Wanna join us? Or do you have something else on?" The blond teen answered as he took a sip from his canned juice.

"No, I won't be joining you. I have to be up early tomorrow. Paperwork." Toshihiko grunted out the last word, earning laughs from his company at his obvious displeasure.

The brown haired woman peeked at her watch and announced, "Well, I guess it's time for me to leave." She then reached into her bag for her cell phone and dialed a number, which probably belonged to her chauffeur.

"Hello? Yes, I'm leaving now, ready the car. Yes, thank you Kuroki-san."

With that, she flipped her phone shut and placed it back into her bag.

"Enjoy yourselves," said the brown haired woman as she started to leave, only to pause in her tracks as she remembered something.

"Oh right, remember not to stay out too late, hime-chan."

The aqua haired violinist simply nodded in reply and waved. The others simply bowed as the older Kaiou made her way to the door.

"Speaking of which… Old man, what time do you have to go? You sure you don't wanna grab a bite with us?"

The older Tenou narrowed his eyes. "I'm _only_ in my forties, _boy_."

"Pfft," the racer scoffed, "As if that isn't old. But seriously, what time are you leaving?"

"In about five minutes. Maeda will be coming to pick me up. And kid, stay off the alcohol. You _know_ that you're still under aged, don't you?"

"Geez, cut that out already, old man. I know that!" the Tenou boy whined and stole a glance at the clock sitting on the table. "Oh look!" the racer exclaimed as he pointed that the clock. "Five minutes are up! You _have_ to go or Maeda's going to drive off without you!"

The older Tenou blatantly ignored what his son was saying and turned his attention to the young guitarist who was watching the Tenous with an amused expression evident on his face.

"Kou, make sure he doesn't touch any alcohol."

"Got it oji-san, you can count on me."

The dark haired man balled his hand into a fist and thumped it against his chest as a sign of promise. Toshihiko grinned at the young man's antics and clapped him on the back before turning to leave. The young racer could only groan in exasperation and rolled his eyes. Way to go, old man. Way to embarrass him in front of the aqua haired girl like that… Acting all fatherly and friendly when he usually wasn't.

The violinist chuckled at the playful banter between the Tenous, wondering if she would be able to communicate with her parents like that.

_Probably not. _

Her parents were rather traditional people. They were people who were particular about manners, etiquette, and respect for the elders. The only funny thing was how they did not freak out when they heard that their daughter was into women. She had expected them to freak out, to be frank. She soused that

"-chiru-san?"

"Yes, is something the matter?"

The violinist snapped her attention to the speaker almost immediately, reddening slightly for getting lost in her own thoughts.

"We're leaving soon. Do you want to get changed first? We'll wait out at the lobby if you want to."

"Sure, give me five minutes?"

The dark haired man merely smiled.

"Okay, see you at the lobby in five."

* * *

She breathed a sigh of relief and she placed her violin case onto the ground gingerly. Tugging at the band that kept her hair in a tight bun, she shook her aqua tresses free. Feeling much better, she made her way to the vanity table and started removing her make-up. Her manager had already left to tie up the loose ends the concert ensued. She let out another sigh, recalling the moments before the performance begun.

The look in her fiancé's eyes back then bore deep into her soul. She shivered. The scene was still so vivid. She could still feel the pianist's touch on her hand. Her heartbeat had since quelled, but reminding herself about what happened made it race yet again. The feeling stayed with her, even during the performance. It was scary how the Tenou heir affected her in a way no one else ever had. It scared her how she actually _liked_ that feeling. She had never felt that way before.

The dress was starting to get uncomfortable. It felt prickly from time to time even. She stopped her ministrations all of the sudden as she realized one thing. There was no way to get out of her dress. The godforsaken zip was on her back! She couldn't call Miho-san. That woman always had her phone off while she was working. There was absolutely no way to reach her.

Nevertheless, Kaious were stubborn people, and she was no exception. So she tried.

But… to no avail. The zip felt like it got stuck. It just wouldn't budge no matter how much she tugged at it. She groaned in frustration as her line of sight soon moved to her cell phone which lay innocently on the vanity.

* * *

"It's been ten minutes… Do you think everything's fine?"

The blond racer tapped his foot impatiently, and a steady rhythm echoed throughout the empty lobby. The rest of the staff had already left without them, and Setsuna had gone to fetch the car before the guitarist could lay his hands upon it. Getting lost that one time was enough, she decided. Michiru's manager, was however nowhere in sight after disappearing from the dressing room earlier on.

"Nah, don't worry about it. I'm sure she's-

The teal eyed teen quickly held a hand up, silencing his best friend as he reached into his pocket for the cell which was vibrating against his thigh.

"Hello?"

"_Haruka-kun?"_

The melodic voice of his soon-to-be ex-fiancée filled his ears.

"Mi… chiru-san…?" He managed, albeit slowly. "Is everything okay?"

"_Yes, everything is fine. Just that… um…"_

Her voice sure sounded hesitant.

The blond teen grew worried.

"_I need some help here… Could you… perhaps make a trip to my dressing room?"_

Was that… an invitation? His heartbeat quickened. He quickly shook his head at the notion. That just wasn't possible. She must've needed help for something.

"Sure… I'll be right there in a minute."

"_Thank you."_

The violinist let out a relieved sigh before she hung up. Haruka then turned to his best friend, "Kou, go on ahead. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Oh?"

The expression upon the violet eyed man's handsome face turned playful almost immediately, a sly grin breaking out very quickly. He quickly slung an arm around the blond boy's shoulders, widening his grin at the same time.

"What's this? Abandoning your best friend for your pretty fiancée already, are you?"

Haruka rolled his eyes, shrugging off the tall man's arm which was around his shoulders.

"Har har har, very funny," he remarked sarcastically.

"Do I look like I'm laughing?"

His best friend narrowed his eyes in mock irritation.

"Yeah, yeah, I got it already. Go on, run along."

The handsome man gave his best friend a gentle push on the back, the mischievous grin on his face turning into an evil smirk as he retorted, "Just don't continue with what you were about to do just now."

Laughter soon ensued and the teal eyed boy grunted in response, raising a hand in reply as he walked to the dressing room.

* * *

The halls were air-conditioned, he was damn sure of it. He stuck a finger into his collar and pulled, hoping the cool surrounding air would somehow enter his system. His palms were sweaty. He stared at the milk colored door in front of him. He then swallowed. The lump in his throat was back… yet again. Being alone with the beautiful violinist in a dressing room when the entire building was almost void of human presence… was a bad idea.

And a very bad one at that.

The handsome racer removed his finger from his collar and breathed, hoping that his heartbeat would begin to steady. It didn't work.

_Whatever. Be a man!_

No matter how ironic the self-encouragement sounded, he plucked his courage and raised his hand to knock on the door.

A faint 'come in' was heard and he took that as the cue to enter.

_Here goes nothing. _

"Michiru-san?"

The ocean eyed girl flushed lightly at her predicament as the Tenou heir entered the room. She calmed herself quickly, however.

"Thank goodness you're here, Haruka-kun."

The blond racer rose a brow at her statement inquiringly, an action which the violinist fleetingly thought, was cute.

_Michiru!_

She chided herself inwardly as a light blush crept up her neck.

He licked his dried lips.

"Is there something you needed help with, Michiru-san?"

"My…" started the ocean eyed girl slowly.

"My zip… it… it got stuck." she continued bashfully. The racer's teal eyes widened considerably, immediately knowing what was it that the smaller girl had needed help with. The room felt a _whole_ lot hotter all of a sudden.

He pointed at the zip. "So you want me to…"

The violinist nodded in reply.

"I… I can't… I mean-

"I'm really sorry for asking you to do this, Haruka-kun. But I _really_ need to get out of this dress, it's getting rather… uncomfortable," she fidgeted and squirmed.

_Oh God, why are you doing this to me?_

"A-Alright," Haruka agreed and took small, slow steps towards the young violinist.

The aqua haired girl turned, such that her back faced the Tenou heir and lifted the back of her wavy aqua tresses. Hesitantly, the blond boy closed his eyes and _pulled_.

The smaller girl let out a yelp as the force of the pull knocked her off her balance, tipping her towards the tall racer's torso with the hook of her bra exposed. The taller occupant of the room held his arms out in reflex and wrapped them around the violinist's slender waist, steadying the both of them with his weight. The musicians' faces turned scarlet at the contact, one being embarrassed for her exposed bra and another… well, for certain thoughts that crossed his mind briefly upon bodily contact between the fabric of his shirt and the violinist's _exposed_ back.

_I'm so dead I'm so dead I'm so dead I'm so de-_

The small violinist cleared her throat.

"Haruka-kun? Thank you for your help, I believe I can manage from here," she breathed forcefully.

Haruka removed his arms quickly and nodded dumbly at the Kaiou girl's statement.

As the doors shut behind him, he clutched his hand tightly above his throbbing heart. Surprised at how fast it was beating, and how much it ached.

And it was then that he realized.

That he had fallen hard.

For the one girl whom he had repeatedly told himself to steer clear of no matter how difficult it was. There was no way he could turn back anymore, no matter how hard he tried.

_End of Chapter_

Akira: And there you go. It's still very short, isn't it? But it's still longer than the previous chapter. :p I'm wondering if I'm being anti-climatic again. I have this nagging feeling that I should just end it where Michiru cleared her throat or somewhere before that. I am sooooooooo evil. And I'm sooooooooo dead. I _really_ should be studying for my paper tomorrow. So ciao. Oh and do leave a review if you'd like. No obligations, but it's always good to hear what you think. :)


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